THUNDER BAY, Ont. - Toronto got the $416-million funding commitment it was seeking from the provincial government Friday to help build a new fleet of modern streetcars but a matching pledge from the federal government never materialized as hoped.
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Toronto Mayor David Miller visited a Bombardier (TSX:BBD.B) plant in Thunder Bay, Ont., to announce the plan to build 204 sleek transit vehicles now has two-thirds of the funding it needs to go ahead and just lacks a federal contribution.
But federal Transportation and Infrastructure Minister John Baird has insisted the streetcar project doesn't qualify for Ottawa's stimulus program -- through which Miller applied for the transit funding -- and gave no indications Friday that he'd had a change of heart.
McGuinty said he's not giving up hope and will continue to pressure the federal government to sign on before the June 27 deadline when the contract with Bombardier expires.
"We have some time and we'll do whatever we can," McGuinty said.
"Incent, invite, prod, provoke, cajole, encourage -- whatever we might (do) to get the federal government to come to the table."
Federal Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff also threw his support behind the project in the House of Commons Friday, noting Bombardier's estimates that the contract would create more than 5,000 direct jobs and 10,300 indirect jobs in Ontario.
"Why isn't this government supporting a project that will create thousands of jobs in Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba, why aren't they supporting a world-class company, Bombardier?" Ignatieff said.
"And why aren't they supporting energy-efficient transit for Canada's largest city."
But Baird said the project -- which would see the new streetcars start hitting Toronto's streets by 2012 and through 2018 -- doesn't fit the criteria for stimulus funding.
"One of the requirements of that stimulus fund is that we get projects moving quickly and they conclude within the next two years -- that was the plan that this House supported, that was the plan the leader of the opposition supported," Baird said.
"We're moving aggressively to create jobs in Toronto now, not in the next five or 10 years."
Canadian Auto Workers president Ken Lewenza also urged the federal government to contribute to the streetcar project, saying it would be a huge boost to many local economies.
"It's incredibly disappointing to hear our transport minister use funding technicalities as an excuse to justify the government's inaction," he said in a release.
"It would be an absolute shame if the federal government pulled the plug on this landmark streetcar project, not only because of the economic ramifications but also the social and environmental benefits it brings to millions of Canadians in the Greater Toronto Area."
Thunder Bay Mayor Lynn Peterson called the news "incredible."
"There are so many people that worked so hard on this in the last three or four years," Peterson told the Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal.
"This one is the biggest contract ever in North America for light rail," she said. "We know the kind of jobs that will come out of this, so it's an exciting day in Thunder Bay."
