Public transportation: Local leaders from across Canada call for new transit funding at Ottawa summit [Video]

Mayors and transit board chairs from seven of Canada’s largest cities gathered in Ottawa Monday, calling on the federal government to address what they are calling a ‘funding crisis’ facing the country’s largest transit agencies.

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During the “Transit for Tomorrow Summit” in the capital, the group signed a joint declaration titled “A New Solution is Needed to Sustain Essential Public Transit Services.”

“Transit is the most powerful method of tackling traffic congestion. It is the lifeblood of economic growth in our biggest cities. It is a solution to the rising cost of living. It helps us reduce carbon emissions,” reads part of the joint declaration.

“But public transit systems across the country are in a financial crisis. If this historic challenge isn’t overcome, we risk a future that is costlier, more polluting, and where gridlock …