Toronto Motorcoach Parking Program A Model For North America

Posted by ABA President & CEO Peter Pantuso, July 7, 2008

Toronto is becoming more motorcoach friendly, and has introduced innovative new initiatives that could serve as a model for other big cities in North America.

As part of their efforts to fight congestion, Toronto officials have created 86 free on-street parking spaces located in the heart of the city’s downtown tourism region reserved exclusively for motorcoaches. These reserved spots allow motorcoaches to load and unload passengers throughout the day. Cars and trucks that park illegally within these spaces are subject to ticketing by law enforcement.

Throughout Toronto, bus operators will also find Motorcoach Loading Zones, Pay and Display on-street parking, and private lots that can be utilized by buses. The Motorcoach Loading zones are available 24 hours a day to enable quick pick-ups and drop-offs, while Pay and Display parking allows buses to purchase parking permits from machines along the sidewalk. The private off-street parking lots enable bus operators to make reservations in advance.

Only recently has the city seen the value of making motorcoaches welcome downtown. Some in our industry had viewed Toronto as a motorcoach unfriendly community – to the point where drivers for some U.S. bus operators believed that being assigned to drive a group tour to Toronto was one of the least inviting dispatches they could possibly receive.

Fortunately, however, the city saw that this was an image they couldn’t afford to have, and they began to take steps to change it. Motorcoach travel is critical to Toronto’s economy, as Canada’s largest city welcomes an estimated 20,000 group coach tours per year, translating into an annual economic benefit of about $175 million.

The congestion mitigation function motorcoaches provide to urban cores was persuasive in convincing Toronto officials to adopt the unprecedented policy.

What Toronto has done to recognize the role of motorcoaches in fighting gridlock and removing cars from the roads should serve as a model of big cities across North America. Not only does each coach take up to 55 single-occupant cars off of congested roads, but it cuts carbon dioxide emissions, reduces wasted fuel from driving around looking for parking, and makes Toronto a more enticing group tour destination.

Toronto leaders deserve a round of applause for their pro-bus, anti-congestion parking policies. Now we need to start convincing other cities in North America to look to Toronto as an example of gridlock-fighting policies that work.