Item - 2017.PW23.8

The Public Works and Infrastructure Committee recommends that:

1.   City Council adopt the Interim Free-Floating Car-Share Policy, attached as Attachment 1 to the report (September 5, 2017) from the General Manager, Transportation Services.

2.   City Council direct the General Manager, Transportation Services, to conduct stakeholder consultation and introduce for consideration as part of the 2018 Budget a new free-floating car-share permit fee.

3.   Subject to the approval of a new free-floating car-share permit fee as part of the 2018 Budget process, City Council authorize the General Manager, Transportation Services to conduct a one-year free-floating car-share pilot project, from March 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019, whereby the General Manager, Transportation Services, may issue permits to car-share organizations/companies in accordance with the process generally set out in Attachment 2 to the report (September 5, 2017) from the General Manager, Transportation Services with such permits permitting car-share vehicles to:

a)   park in locations designated for permit parking; and

b)   be exempt from the three-hour temporal parking duration limits.

while displaying a permit issued by the General Manager for the pilot program and complying with all other terms and conditions as set out in Attachment 2.

4.   Subject to the approval of a new free-floating car-share permit fee as part of the 2018 Budget process, City Council direct the General Manager, Transportation Services, to limit the number of free-floating car-share parking permits to 500 per car-share organization/company and to a maximum of 2,000 permits in total for the pilot project.

5.  City Council direct the General Manager, Transportation Services to report to the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee on the feasibility of improving the temporary daily parking permit process/system for areas with parking availability to interface better with car-share companies including a review of pricing, transferability within the same day, and other operational challenges.

The Acting Director and the General Manager, Transportation Services gave a presentation on Free-Floating Car-Share Pilot and Interim Policy.

This report responds to a request from the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee to consider the feasibility of developing a policy relating to free-floating car-sharing, and recommends introduction of a one year pilot project that would enable free-floating (point-to-point) car-sharing vehicles to park in permit parking areas of the city.

The City of Toronto Official Plan and various policies and programs have long supported the operation of car-sharing services as a sustainable transportation option. Car-sharing programs offer a number of benefits to individuals, businesses, the environment, communities, and transportation network, including:

-   Reduced vehicle ownership rates;
-   Reduced household transportation costs;
-   Reduced vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT);
-   Reduced greenhouse gases and emissions; and
-   An increase in walking, cycling, and transit use.
 

Transportation Services currently administers a program for designating on-street spaces specifically for vehicles displaying a car-share vehicle permit. Car-share operators have also been encouraged to work with the Toronto Parking Authority and private parking lot operators to provide an off-street inventory of spaces.

In recent years, a new operational model for car-share vehicles has emerged in the form of free-floating (point-to-point) services, which has prompted a review of the City's existing car-sharing policies and programs.

These policies must be carefully balanced against impacts to the existing on-street residential permit parking system.

This report recommends the introduction of an interim free-floating car-share policy and provides details on a proposed pilot, including rules and conditions, a temporary permitting system, and that a car-share permit fee be considered as part of the 2018 Budget process.