Drivers in Ontario are going to see some relief thanks to the province’s upcoming budget. The Ford government announced on Tuesday that it will make the gas tax cut permanent and remove tolls from the provincially owned section of Highway 407.
Ford made these promises during the provincial election and says they will provide real, immediate help for people.
The government temporarily reduced the provincial gas tax rate by 5.7 cents and diesel by 5.3 cents back in July 2022, and has extended these cuts several times since then.
Today, Ford revealed that Thursday’s budget will include a plan to make this cut permanent, maintaining the provincial tax rate at nine cents per litre.
Additionally, the budget will permanently eliminate tolls from Highway 407 East, which runs from Pickering to Clarington, Ont.
This latest measure from the Ford government does not address previous requests from the Green Party and advocates who called for subsidies for tolls on Highway 407. During this year’s provincial election, Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles promised to abolish tolls on Highway 407 for all drivers if she became premier.
A report from the Ministry of Transportation in 2021 estimated that those tolls would bring in about $72 million in revenue for the province in 2024-25.
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