London's mayor has been tapped to chair a new provincial task force that aims to improve transportation across southwestern Ontario.
Mayor Ed Holder will lead the nine member Southwest Ontario Transportation Task Force, the province announced Tuesday.
The group, which is mostly made up of mayors, will meet monthly for the next year to determine ways to improve bus and rail service connections across the region. They will then report back to Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney.
"I am honoured to lead this task force, and look forward to collaborating with my colleagues across the region to develop transportation solutions that will better serve not only our individual municipalities, but southern Ontario at large," Holder said in a statement. "Improving how people get around their communities, how they travel across Ontario, and how they travel to and from work are all absolutely essential components of building a strong post-COVID economy."
Establishing a transportation task force was one of more than 40 recommendations put forward in a draft transportation plan put forward last January. The 22-page transit roadmap, named “Connecting the Southwest”, focused on enhancing existing rail and transit networks, instead of constructing a new Windsor-to-London high-speed rail line.
Over a two month period last year, more than 1,400 people provided feedback on the document.
"We're working to address transportation needs in regions across Ontario and feedback from leaders who live and work in the local community will be essential," said Mulroney. "The Southwest Task Force will ensure transportation plans for the southwest reflect the diverse voices within the community and help determine the most important transportation needs in the region."
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens will serve as vice chair of the task force.
Other members include St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston, Strathroy-Caradoc Mayor Joanne Vanderheyden, Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald, Chief of Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation Jason Henry, Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation Councillor Sidney Nadjiwon, Owen Sound Transportation Company Limited Chair Marta Leardi-Anderson, and Blue Water Bridge Duty Free Shop Vice President Tania Lee.