Whereas the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure lacks the funding, staffing and mandate to plan overall road networks in unincorporated areas and to proactively deal with transportation and development planning issues in the fringe interface areas of municipalities and regional districts; And whereas problems with runoff from roads and development are increasingly severe across the province, and are significantly impacted by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure decisions around subdivision approvals and road infrastructure; And whereas the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure does not proactively engage with local governments on future planning and maintenance of numbered routes that run through local governments and often through downtown cores: Therefore be it resolved that the Province direct and fund the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure to engage with local governments on overall road network planning and subdivision planning in order to improve decision-making to reduce cumulative negative impacts on communities.
Ministry of Transportation and Transit The Ministry of Transportation and Transit regularly collaborates with municipalities and regional districts on local planning and development issues, including engaging in proactive planning. For example, ministry staff are often engaged by regional districts to discuss common goals and guiding principles for future planning related to their Official Community Plans OCP and to identify opportunities for collaboration and alignment. The ministry regularly undertakes planning studies for highway corridors and provincial infrastructure to identify, develop, and evaluate strategies and potential short, medium, and long-term improvements to address future needs. These ministry-led planning studies include active engagement with local governments, First Nations, and other key stakeholders and account for shared priorities around safety and mobility, as well as other key considerations such as active transportation, transit, future land use, and development. While local land use and municipal transportation decisions remain the responsibility of local governments, Section 52 of the Transportation Act requires ministerial approval for any zoning bylaw that affects land within a controlled area defined as the radius of 800 metres around a Controlled Access Highway intersection. In those circumstances, ministry staff review the proposed bylaw, assess potential traffic impacts, and may require the local governmentthrough the developerto submit a Traffic Impact Assessment. This assessment helps determine whether any developer-driven improvements or mitigation measures are necessary to address traffic concerns. The rural subdivision process is managed by the Ministry of Transportation and Transit; however, final subdivision approval rests with the Provincial Approving Officer, who operates in the capacity of statutory decision maker within the ministry. As part of the subdivision process, the ministrys development officers make formal referrals to local land use authorities to ensure compliance with local bylaws. Ministry staff carefully review each subdivision application on its own merits, considering factors such as access including: review of the approach roads intended to be used to serve the proposed subdivision, access to the proposed lots, access to lands beyond, access to water and in the case of subdivisions adjacent to Controlled Access Highways, alternate access to the subdivision from local roads, drainage, and the presence of natural hazards, among other important criteria.