Why Toronto Should Follow Chicago’s Lead and Tax Ride-Share to Fund Transit

Last fall Chicago City Council passed a 15-cent fee on ride-share trips to fund CTA infrastructure, which kicked in on January 1. Since recent studies show that services like Uber and Lyft are increasing congestion and cannibalizing transit ridership in U.S. cities, this is a sensible approach to level the playing field.

Now Toronto, perhaps the most similar city to Chicago in North America in terms of size and geography, is considering the same strategy. CBC Radio One, Toronto invited me to discuss Chicago's experiences with host Matt Galloway this morning. TTC chair Josh Cole and former Toronto chief city planner Jennifer Keesmaat also discussed the idea on the show. As proof of Canadian politeness, no one made fun of my stateside pronunciation of their city's name, with three syllables instead of the Torontonian two.