What is a Transportation Master Plan?

A Transportation Master Plan (TMP) is a detailed, long-term planning document that provides details on how the City will enhance, manage, and invest in a Barrie's transportation infrastructure. These plans are essential for shaping how people and goods move within a community.

Key points about TMPs:

• Strategic Framework: A TMP outlines the vision, goals, and priorities for a city’s transportation system. It considers different ways people move around city, including walking, cycling, driving, and public transit.
• Long-Term Perspective: TMPs typically cover 20 to 25 years. They consider projected population growth, land use changes, and evolving transportation needs.
• Multi-Modal Approach: TMPs promote a multi-modal approach, emphasizing a mix of transportation options. This includes improving roads, sidewalks, bike lanes, and public transit networks.
• Community Livability: TMPs enhance community livability by ensuring safe, efficient, and sustainable transportation options. They address congestion, safety, environmental impacts, and accessibility.
• Integration with Official Plans: TMPs work in conjunction with a municipality’s Official Plan, which guides land use and development patterns. The plans complement each other to create a cohesive vision for the community.

A Transportation Master Plan serves as a roadmap for a city’s transportation system, aiming to create a well-connected, accessible, and resilient urban environment.

Study Need and Purpose

The City is undertaking a fulsome review and update of the previous 2019 TMP. The goal is to update the TMP policies, decision-making approaches, and implementation plan to reflect a changing policy landscape, including but not limited to, strategic directions of the City’s new Official Plan, term of Council Priorities, and emerging directions, best practices, and industry trends.

This update of the TMP will address growth to 2051 to align with provincial plans to grow Barrie as a regional urban centre with a forecasted population of 298,000 and employment of 150,000 by 2051. The TMP will recommend improvement plans for active transportation, transit, trails, and roads as well as a suite of complementary policies to support an overall transportation network plan.

Get Involved!

There are many opportunities to get involved and provide input:

• Register for project updates, news, and important dates at the top right of the page.
• Provide input through this project website via the map tool, idea board, and Q & A tool.
• Attend the Public Information Centre (PIC) Meetings. These meetings will provide information and gather public input. Three PICs are planned for this project. The first PIC Meeting took place on November 14, 2024 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Peggy Hill Team Community Centre (171 Mapleton Ave., Barrie). You can view the meeting presentation and display boards under the "Documents, Videos, and Presentations" section on the right-hand side of this page.
• The online comment form was open until December 14, 2024 to share feedback on the Preliminary Vision Statement, Guiding Principles, the existing transportation network, and your future travel needs.