Making the most of our assets

Ontario is improving the way we invest in infrastructure to deliver more value for the people.

Through the collection of quality data, the exercise of proper planning principles and measurement of performance, asset managers can maximize the life, performance and value of existing infrastructure and the services that infrastructure provides. This allows us to ensure we get the most out of what we already have. Our commitment to invest efficiently means we will balance maintenance and modernization.

The current landscape

1. Too many organizations are responsible for infrastructure

Ontario owns and oversees more than $230 billion in roads, bridges, hospitals, schools, colleges, buildings, courts, transit and more. Ontario also provides money for other facilities across the broader public sector.

Responsibility for planning and delivering infrastructure is spread across many provincial organizations, ranging from ministries and agencies to the broader public sector, including 141 hospital corporations and 72 school boards.

To improve how we plan, procure and deliver infrastructure projects, we first need to streamline decision-making processes upfront in the planning and procurement phases and integrate organizational structures between government ministries and agencies to achieve better business practices.

2. Infrastructure and land-use planning often occur separately, resulting in ineffective infrastructure use

Infrastructure must meet the needs of Ontario’s communities as they grow and mature. When this does not happen, families, businesses and our economy all suffer.

The solution is not always to keep building more. Instead we must prioritize smart planning. Investments in our infrastructure must consider growth-management tools and land-use planning for things like future employment, housing, and extreme weather conditions (such as flooding). Through better planning we can ensure that our infrastructure will continue to meet the needs of our communities — today and into the future.

3. We are not getting the most out of our existing infrastructure

Much of the infrastructure we need is already built. However, as our population grows, as new technologies are introduced, and as our economy becomes more complex, the pressures placed on our existing assets will only increase. Our infrastructure must adapt to a changing world. We must look after what we have, make necessary improvements, and look at innovative ways to expand the use of our existing infrastructure.

By making consistent infrastructure renewal investments, we can save money and get more out our infrastructure. These investments will help either reduce or delay the number of entirely new assets we will need to build in the future. In the long run, it costs more money to neglect our assets than it does to look after them in the first place.

Top infrastructure planners agree with this approach. According to one study, getting more from how we build, maintain, and use infrastructure can help fill nearly 40% of the world’s annual infrastructure needs.^{footnote 6[6]}

England took this approach to address traffic congestion on the M42 motorway. It implemented varied speed limits and, to create more capacity, opened hard surface shoulders as full vehicle lanes during peak periods. As a result, it was able to reduce journey times by up to 25% as an alternative to costly road-widening.^{footnote 7[7]}

The right data can also help us get the most out of our infrastructure. This includes improving the way we make infrastructure-planning decisions, such as maintenance versus replacement decisions. Other sectors, like finance, retail and automotive, are embracing advanced analytics to improve their operations. For example, retailers track the number of sales they generate for each square foot of space. This helps them make sure they are maximizing their retail space and driving profit.

By taking advantage of data-driven methods when making planning decisions, we will be able to free up capital for other projects while improving the performance of existing assets.

Our commitment

Ontario is taking a critical look at how we manage our assets across all phases of the life cycle. This will help us better maximize our assets. Rebuilding Ontario will improve how we plan, deliver and manage our infrastructure. We will better optimize the performance of our existing infrastructure to deliver resilient, high-quality and value-for-money services to the people of Ontario well into the future.

Asset management

Plan

• Integrate land-use and infrastructure planning
• Prioritize investment across sectors

Manage

• Improve asset management practices
• Get the right data on how infrastructure is used

Deliver

• Transform planning and procurement to improve efficiency and save money

1. Transform infrastructure planning and procurement for improved decision-making and more efficient project delivery

Infrastructure planning and procurement are the essential processes we use to determine service needs, prioritize investments, and get infrastructure designed and built. The more efficient these processes are, the more money we will save and have for other priority projects.

For example, a review of international projects suggests that improving design, procurement and construction processes could reduce costs by 25% on new projects.^{footnote 9[9]}

We will look at ways to improve how we plan for infrastructure by breaking down silos between government ministries and agencies, reducing duplication in procurement and planning processes, and focusing our resources on priority investments.

We are carefully considering how using a new approach to infrastructure planning and procurement across government could make better use of taxpayer dollars.

Our review will include:

• identifying the most effective government ministry or agency to perform planning and procurement functions
• making the right decisions on when to renew or build infrastructure
• requiring clear accountability, effective governance and oversight

This review is part of our wider plan to restore trust and accountability in the province’s public finances. With this review, we are making progress on the line-by-line review of public spending, Managing Transformation — A Modernization Action Plan, which suggested there is an opportunity for government to achieve efficiencies by driving better infrastructure results.

2. Integrate infrastructure planning with land-use planning and growth management

As our communities continue to grow, they must have the right infrastructure investments in the right places and at the right time, so they remain strong and vibrant for generations to come.

Part of maximizing our assets is about making integrated decisions based on long-term planning principles. This will ensure the infrastructure we have and build is used to its fullest extent and maximum benefit.

To prevent overbuilding, duplication and inefficient or underused services, we will integrate land-use planning, growth management and infrastructure planning as leading considerations for future infrastructure decisions.

Specifically, we will:

• review our infrastructure planning and decision processes to align infrastructure decisions for major projects with land-use planning, growth management, and environmental considerations.
• align infrastructure investment to support the implementation of provincial land-use policies, including the Province’s Growth Plans (A Place to Grow: Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe and the Growth Plan for Northern Ontario^{footnote 10[10]}). For example, when a municipality requests provincial funding for a wastewater facility, the municipality should confirm that the location and capacity of the facility aligns with provincial land-use planning and growth management frameworks before funding can be approved.
• work with municipalities to identify areas that will be the focus of growth and development (for example, major transit station areas, employment areas) and align them with provincial infrastructure plans.

3. Improve asset management practices to get the most from our infrastructure

At the core of maximizing our assets is getting the most out of our existing infrastructure. This means we must evolve our use of assets to be smarter, more productive and more efficient so we can better manage infrastructure spending in a sustainable way. We must also increase the functional capacity and longevity of our services for future generations.

We can do this by:

• modernizing our asset management planning and practices
• better prioritizing new investments

Improving our asset management planning and practices can help us stretch capital dollars for more savings.

The governments of British Columbia and New South Wales in Australia have recently modernized their asset management processes to put people, finances and information at the core of decision-making. Learning from these examples, Ontario is working to evolve our asset management process.

We will establish an interdisciplinary and innovative team from across different ministries to:

• share knowledge, research, experience and proven practices used in overseeing specific assets, including engaging the broader public sector to learn about their asset needs and processes. This alignment will help bring together our best and brightest thinkers to find new solutions
• improve data collection and integration on infrastructure condition, capacity and utilization across all sectors to identify challenges and opportunities sooner
• apply advanced analytics, including information on financials and infrastructure utilization (e.g. transit ridership, water consumption, etc.) and innovative technologies to optimize the use of existing infrastructure. This will allow us to repurpose aging infrastructure and upgrade operational systems to deliver quality services while limiting the need for additional major capital costs. It will also provide us with insight on how to make sure our infrastructure is prepared for future challenges

Data analytics plays an important role in delivering targeted quality services while also managing costs. Investment decisions on whether to build new or repair existing assets, which are often based on time (e.g. end-of-life) or events (e.g. critical failure), can be better informed by applying advanced analytics — such as performance, condition, capacity, growth projections or the impact of weather. This information can generate critical insights on key decisions, such as whether to invest in refurbishing an asset or replacing it.

As part of the broader modernization of our asset management processes, we will also consider ways to grow our analytical capacity for smarter infrastructure planning and decision-making, particularly in the context of changing service needs and fiscal constraints.

Prioritizing investment decisions is never easy, but it is necessary so that we do not burden future generations with underutilized and expensive new projects. Building on the recommendations of the line-by-line review, we will focus resources on investments that address the highest needs and demonstrate long-term sustainability. Studies have shown that establishing prioritization frameworks to select projects can reduce costs by 15% to 20%.^{footnote 11[11]}

To realize some of these benefits, the Ministry of Infrastructure will work with other ministries to develop new approaches to assess and direct investments across sectors, as part of a broader transformation of the infrastructure planning process.

The government will prioritize projects that have a real impact on people’s daily lives while delivering the best value for taxpayers across sectors (e.g. health, education, transit, transportation, justice, etc.) to respond to our most pressing needs and help ensure sustainable service delivery now and into the future.

The goal is to find ways to meet community needs by extending the life, capacity and performance of existing infrastructure, and by taking a strategic approach to any new investments. Infrastructure projects represent significant investments of public funds. The people of Ontario must have confidence that these investments are being made wisely and will pay dividends for generations to come.