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Federal government announces new Building Canada plan

March 28,
2013, Ottawa, ON – The Government of Canada has announced preliminary details
of the new Building Canada plan. Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty announced the
new plan alongside details of the annual federal budget.

March 28,
2013, Ottawa, ON – The Government of Canada has announced preliminary details
of the new Building Canada plan. Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty announced the
new plan alongside details of the annual federal budget.

Here are
the details released by Infrastructure Canada:

Since
2006, the Government has made investments in over 43,000 projects to build
roads, bridges, commuter rail and other important public infrastructure.

As a
result of the investments, the Government of Canada has brought the average age
of Canada's core public infrastructure down from a peak of 17 years in 2001 to
an estimated 14.4 years in 2011. It is now lower than the historical average
over the last 50 years.

Economic
Action Plan 2013 builds on the investments and announces a new Building Canada
plan – the largest investment in job-creating infrastructure in Canadian
history.

The new
Building Canada plan has three main components:

·       Community Improvement Fund – $32.2
billion consisting of an indexed Gas Tax Fund and the increased GST Rebate for
Municipalities to build roads, public transit, recreational facilities and
other community infrastructure across Canada that will improve the quality of
life of Canadian families.

·       New Building Canada Fund – $14
billion to support infrastructure projects of national, regional and local
significance.

·       Renewed P3 Canada Fund – $1.25
billion to continue finding innovative ways to build infrastructure projects
faster and provide better value for Canadian taxpayers through public-private
partnerships.

In
addition, $6 billion in federal support will be provided to provinces,
territories and municipalities under current infrastructure programs in 2014-15
and beyond.

Over the
next 10 years, the Government will also make significant investments in First
Nations infrastructure and in federal assets.

·       Approximately $7 billion over 10
years in First Nations infrastructure such as roads, bridges, energy systems
and other First Nations infrastructure priorities.

·       Over $10 billion in investments in
federal infrastructure assets, including:

o  
$124.9
million to build a bridge-causeway between Nuns Island and the Island of
Montreal, as part of the New Bridge for the St. Lawrence that will replace the
Champlain Bridge.

o  
$25
million over three years to advance the Windsor-Detroit International Crossing
project.

o  
$54.7
million in 2013-14 to support VIA Rails operations and $58.2 million over five
years to maintain passenger rail services for remote communities that have
limited access to the national transportation network.

o  
$19
million in 2013-14 for improvements to highways and associated bridges that
pass through Canadas national parks.

o  
Investments
in other federal infrastructure assets, including bridges, small craft
harbours, ports, military bases and departmental accommodations across the
country.

Overall,
the new Building Canada plan, combined with other federal infrastructure
investments will result in $70 billion in federal infrastructure funding over
10 years, the largest federal investment in infrastructure in Canadian history.

For more
information on the new Building Canada plan, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca.