Ontario Content for Transit
THUNDER BAY – News – Bill Mauro is giving another try. The Thunder Bay Atikokan MPP has a proposed bill, known as the Buy in Canada for Mass Transit Vehicles Act.
Mauro’s measure would require that at least 60 percent of the cost of mass transit vehicles purchased by Ontario municipalities with the assistance of provincial funding be made up of Canadian labour costs, material costs, overhead, and profits.
Additionally, the legislation would require that the final assembly of these mass transit vehicles take place in Canada. This means that, more than ever, the funds municipalities spend on passenger commuter rails, subway cars, light rail vehicles, street cars, airport people movers and buses – essential parts of Ontario’s modern infrastructure – would help strengthen the domestic mass transit industry and protect jobs in the province.
The private member’s bill holds special significance for Thunder Bay, where Bombardier Canada employs 1,400 people in the construction of light rail vehicles, subway cars, and GO-transit vehicles. Mauro stated in an interview with NetNewsLedger that when he was first elected, there were 240 workers at Bombardier. Adding greater made in Ontario content would boost that total significantly according to the MPP.
The regulations called for in the proposed bill would help protect these jobs and encourage future job growth in the mass transit sector. In the end, then, the proposed bill is further testament to the longstanding commitment of MPP Mauro and this Liberal government to the growth and prosperity of one of northwestern Ontario’s most vital industries.
