Niagara Public Transit Receives More Than $35 Million In Funding From Federal Government

Ensuring long-term predictable public transit funding for the Regional Municipality of Niagara with over $35 million through the Canada Public Transit Fund

News from Canada’s Federal Government

Posted January 30^th, 2025 on Niagara At Largely

St. Catharines, Ontario — By working closely with its partners across Canada, the federal government is ensuring that more Canadians will be able to live near public transit, connecting them to jobs, services, and their communities.

This past January 29^th, 2025, the Honourable Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Chris Bittle, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities and Member of Parliament for St. Catharines, Jim Bradley, Niagara Regional Chair, and Mat Siscoe, Mayor of St. Catharines and the chair of the Niagara Transit Commission, announced a federal investment of more than $35 million in transit funding for the Regional Municipality of Niagara, providing predictable and long-term funding.

Through the new Canada Public Transit Fund’s Baseline Funding stream, the Regional Municipality of Niagara’s transit authority, Niagara Region Transit, will receive an annual funding allocation amounting to over $35 million over 10 years. Funding will upgrade, replace, or modernize the Region’s public transit infrastructure, and maintain it in a state of good repair.

This investment, beginning in 2026 until 2036, will help increase the housing supply and affordability as part of complete, transit-oriented communities, while helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impacts of climate change.  

Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley,

“This funding boost is a welcome investment in Niagara’s future. For years now, all of Niagara has been unified in recognizing the importance of a robust, efficient and well-connected transit network, which is why Niagara’s municipalities came together to create the Niagara Transit Commission in 2022.” said Niagara Regional Chair Jim Bradley. “From students travelling to campus, to businesses bringing in employees, to seniors getting to medical appointments, so many in our community rely on a robust transit system that services all of Niagara, and this funding will ensure that Niagara Transit can continue to serve the evolving needs of our residents now, and into the future. 

Quick facts

• The Regional Municipality of Niagara will receive $35,659,510 over ten years from 2026 to 2036. Federal funding is conditional on the submission of capital plans and the signing of funding agreements with all recipients of Baseline funding.
• The Canada Public Transit Fund (CPTF) is the largest public transit investment in Canadian history. It is designed to meet the unique needs of communities of all sizes, from large metropolitan areas to mid-size and smaller communities, including rural, remote, northern and Indigenous communities.
• Since 2015, the federal government has committed over $30 billion for public transit and active transportation projects. These historic investments have resulted in close to 2000 projects across the country.
• Starting in 2026-27, the CPTF will provide an average of $3 billion a year in permanent funding that will respond to local needs by enhancing integrated planning, improving access to public transit and active transportation, and supporting the development of more affordable, sustainable, and inclusive communities.

The CPTF supports transit and active transportation investments through three streams:

Metro-Region Agreements offer a new way for the federal government, provinces and municipalities to collaborate together. These agreements will support the long-term development of public transit infrastructure in large urban areas. Through these agreements, the federal government will allocate funding and work with our partners to support the planning and construction of public transit. This funding is about promoting liveable communities with accessible public transit and attainable housing.

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