Thunder Bay mayor Keith Hobbs says many options for federal transit money

Thunder Bay's mayor says he's encouraged by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit to the city last Friday.

Trudeau spoke at the transit headquarters on Fort William Road, where he highlighted the over $3 billion available to municipalities for spending on transit.

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The Prime Minister's announcement was short on details for Thunder Bay he said the city could see "millions," but Keith Hobbs said city officials are going over the transit master plan to see what projects could be eligible for funding help from Ottawa.

"I was hoping for a specific dollar announcement, but that didn't come," Hobbs said. "But we're going to be working on that, our administration will be looking into the finer details."

Thunder Bay-Superior North MP Patty Hajdu told reporters on Friday that how much the city receives will be determined by what projects city council puts forward for funding.

Hobbs pointed to a number of possibilities, including relocating the transit building to another location, upgrading amenities at city hall, related to its role as a transit terminal, and adding or replacing buses in the city's fleet.

"We always need new buses," Hobbs said. "We could spruce up our fleet you can always spruce up your fleet so we'll just see what it looks like, see what kind of dollars we're going to be allotted."

City council deferred the purchase of a new bus during this year's budget deliberations.

Examining funding options for road work

Trudeau's funding announcement for a major road extension in Sudbury has Hobbs wondering if Thunder Bay may also be able to apply for funding to help with roads.

"The Prime Minister just announced $26.5 millionfor Sudbury for a road project that was $80 million," he said.

"The province matched it, so we're keeping an eye on that for sure. Because I want a good share of money."

Hobbs pointed to the work the city has already done on road, bridge and sewer projects over the past several years, including the rehabilitation of Golf Links Road, the Harbour Expressway, and other thoroughfares.

"We are paying attention to the main drags," he said.