Kinew peppers Pallister over bus electrification funding

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/03/2018 (2228 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Calls for the provincial government to commit to investing carbon tax revenue into funding the electrification of Winnipeg Transit buses continues to fall on deaf ears.

In question period Tuesday, NDP Leader Wab Kinew chose to demand, yet again, that the province attach a dollar figure to its commitment to electric buses, but got nowhere.

“We know the premier has expert advice, for going on two years now, on the electrification of buses,” Kinew told the house. “Does he simply refuse to act because he wants to lump all his carbon taxes into general revenue?”

Premier Brian Pallister didn’t answer the question. Instead, he accused Kinew of speaking so fast and with so much rhetoric because he was hoping no one would notice the former NDP government had no green plan.

When reached for comment Tuesday, a spokesman for Mayor Brian Bowman said his requests for a meeting on — or to begin a discussion about — how the province’s newly minted carbon tax will affect Winnipeg Transit have not been met.

The province’s decision to implement the carbon tax on public transit is expected to cost the city roughly $1.8 million more in operating costs annually.

“The mayor does have regular meetings with (Municipal Relations Minister Jeff) Wharton, and transit is a file that is often discussed; however, the impact of the carbon tax on Winnipeg Transit has not yet been discussed. The mayor has indicated he’d like to have a dialogue on this front, but that has not yet occurred,” the spokesman said.

Kinew’s reference in question period to the government having “expert advice for going on two years now on the electrification of buses” refers to a pilot project report commissioned by the City of Winnipeg and the provincial government in November 2015.

Sustainable Development Minister Rochelle Squires told reporters last week that the government was interested in looking into the prospect of expanding the use of electric buses in Winnipeg, but was holding off on making concrete plans until the pilot project report was finalized.

However, the 12-page report — entitled The Future is Ahead of You: Battery-Electric Bus Zero Emissions — appears to have been finalized 20 months ago, shortly after the Pallister government took office.

Despite the report being dated July 2016, the minister insists it was only recently finalized, although she has yet to offer an explanation for the discrepancy.

The city was asked Tuesday when it received the finalized version of the pilot project report. A city spokesman responded by email, saying “the city was represented on the task force that developed the report,” but did not say when the report was finalized.

The report, which the province appears to have been sitting on for nearly two years, recommended adding up to 20 new electric buses to Winnipeg Transit’s fleet as a move toward electrifying the city’s bus service.

Currently, the vast majority of the city’s buses (aside from those used in the pilot project) run on diesel fuel. Since the pilot project concluded in the fall of 2017, the electric buses have remained in operation.

While the report recognized the move towards electric buses would cost taxpayers more in the short-term, it pointed out that, over the long haul, the scale tips in favour of opting for electric buses, largely thanks to technological advancements in the field.

“Electric buses are essentially at the cusp of readiness. Their already-lower operating costs (fuel and maintenance), combined with anticipated future capital-cost reductions, suggests the longer-term advantage is toward electric buses,” the report said.

Also noted was that Winnipeg-based New Flyer is the largest North American manufacturer of transit buses and a leader in hybrid and electric transit bus development, meaning the investment in electrifying Winnipeg Transit could also serve as an investment in the Manitoban economy.

On Monday, Squires would not commit the province to helping fund the electrification of Winnipeg Transit, but said it was a “topic, an initiative, that’s got my interest, our government’s interest and the federal government’s interest as well.”

— with files from Nick Martin

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @rk_thorpe