Ontario Trail News - trails are important, are they important to your elected officials?

Ontario Trails asks Leaders and Candidates to Respond

As we head into vote in the Ontario Provincial election we have been asked by our membership to make sure trail issues are valued by candidates. We crafted 9 questions that you may use with your own candidates. We have received official responses from the Liberals and NDP.  Responses at end of questions.

OUTDOORS -  If elected, what types of improvements would your government continue to make in the outdoor development sector?

• ACTIVE LIVING -  How would you and your government work with the Ontario Trails Council to promote trail use?

• ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION -  Would you and your government work with the Ontario Trails Council to develop a layer of inter-connected trails to rails, trails to bus, trails to trains as advocated by individual trail uses, at the provincial level so that all Ontarians would value know of this inter-connectivity?

• PROVINCIAL MATCHING FUNDING -  Would your government create a dedicated trail infrastructure development fund that could be managed by voluntary sector leaders?

• POLICY COORDINATION -  If elected would you and your lead Ministry for trails make a commitment to ensure that the OTCC meets monthly to manage the affairs of trails?

• BUSINESS COSTS - Would your government consider a fund to support the costs or trail litigation, (as they have in Nova Scotia), or the tort (such as the 2009 National Trails Act in the USA) – for trail groups, trail operators and land managers that promote the public good through trail activity?

• TRAIL JOBS -  Would your government work with the OTC to ensure that each RTO promotes trails through a joint trail promotion program so that this trail economy could be expanded and developed throughout the whole of Ontario?

• PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT -  How would your government work to ensure the OTMPC and other government department’s engaged Ontario Trail leaders in developing destination marketing with world-class trail tourism products as a result?

• WORLD CLASS EVENTS -  Do you see an opportunity going forward to promote more trail events in more places through OTC/Ontario/Private sector partnerships?

As you receive local responses please send your answers to the OTC and we'll keep a record of who said what. We did receive two responses from the Liberals and NDP.

NDP response: http://bit.ly/NDPresponsetoOTC
Liberal response: http://bit.ly/LiberalresponsetoOTC

Also at OTC we are party neutral, these questions have been provided to all candidates and the leaders of the 4 main political parties.