The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) launches The Great Canadian Infrastructure Challenge initiative to bring Canadians into the conversation about municipal infrastructure and its importance in our day to day lives.
“So much of our everyday lives relies on quality municipal infrastructure,” said FCM president Karen Leibovici. “When something goes wrong – whether it’s an aging water main that breaks and floods our street or traffic gridlock that prolongs our commute – we immediately feel its impact on our families and businesses.”
Over the next several months The Great Canadian Infrastructure Challenge website, FCMchallenge.ca, will feature a series of challenges that will give Canadians the opportunity to get more involved in the national debate on long-term investments in core infrastructure. The federal government is working with municipalities to develop a new, long-term infrastructure plan to replace current expiring programs. That work is now entering its final stage. The federal government has said it will have the new infrastructure programs in place in time for the 2014 construction season, and to meet that deadline the new long-term plan must be part of the 2013 federal budget.
“It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity we cannot afford to miss and we need all Canadians to be involved in the debate,” said Leibovici.
