Mayor Darrin Canniff welcomed an announcement by Chatham-Kent Leamington MPP Rick Nicholls that the province has nominated three Chatham-Kent Transit projects for funding.
During a media conference at the Civic Centre this morning Nicholls said the Ford Government has nominated the projects under the Public Transit stream and Rural and Northern stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP).
Under the terms of the ICIP program, local municipalities and the provincial and federal governments each contribute one third of the cost making the total value of the local projects at $4.8 million.
The projects include rehabilitation of the transit terminal and bus shelter, the purchase of public transport vehicles and transit information and technical upgrades.
Canniff said, “providing efficient, affordable public transit is an important goal of the municipality. It is both an economic and social driver in our community.”
He said the municipality is already involved in a project to improve public transit in the municipality.
“We have launched Driving Forward, a strategy for the improvement, growth, and sustainability of public transit and are consulting with residents, businesses, and key stakeholders through https://www.letstalkchatham-kent.ca/CKTransit-strategy in order develop recommendations for new policies, projects, and operating service standards that will guide CKTransit over the next 5-10 years.”
The projects are now with the federal government for final funding decisions as they are reviewed for eligibility under the ICIP program. Some projects could begin as soon as fall 2019.
“These initiatives promise to make a real difference in people’s lives and we’re excited to get shovels in the ground;” said Nicholls. “Now it’s up to the federal government to approve them.”
