The funds will be allocated to pub- lic transit, social infrastructure and green infrastructure. For transit, the government pro- poses to more than triple federal in- vestment over the next four years and quadruple it over 10 years. Specifically, the Liberals say they will boost pub- lic transit spending by $6 billion over the next four years and almost $20 billion over 10 years. Similar allocation/increases will be provided for social infrastructure projects and what the Liberals call “green infrastructure” with priority in “affordable housing and seniors facilities, early learning and child care, and cultural and recreational infrastructure” as well as “local and wastewater facilities, climate re- silient infrastructure, clean energy and clean-up of contaminated sites to fa- cilitate new construction.” The government says it will “reform and increase the transparency of the New Building Canada Fund by provid- ing clearer project criteria and faster approval processes.” The Liberals say their government “will automatically transfer any un- committed federal infrastructure funds near the end of any fiscal year to municipalities, through a temporary top up of the Gas Tax Fund. This will ensure that no committed infrastruc- ture money is allowed to lapse but is To add to more immediate stimulus, the government plans to double federal infrastructure investment in the next two years to $10 billion per year from $5 billion. always invested in communities across the country. The government says it will estab- lish The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) to “provide low-cost financing to build new infrastructure projects.” “This new CIB will work in partner- ship with other orders of governments and Canada’s financial community, so that the federal government can use its strong credit rating and lending au- thority to make it easier – and more af- fordable – for municipalities to finance the broad range of infrastructure proj- ects their companies need,” the Lib- eral policy statement says. “Lending from the CIB will be linked to bal- ance sheet assets, and will not re- quire any increase in the federal government’s accumulated deficit. The government says the new CIB will issue Green Bonds “and make green infrastructure projects more attractive to private investors by offering loan guarantees, reduc- ing financing costs and risks, and bundling small projects into attrac- tive offerings for investors. “The Green Bonds will fund proj- ects such as the electrification of transportation, smart grid technology and transmission lines for renewable energy, electric vehicle charging sta- tions and clean power storage. Where appropriate, the CIB will issue Green Bonds to the public so they too can in- vest in such projects.” MAKE E H HERCULES S S SLR R AN N E ESSENTIAL L M A K E R C U L E L A S S E N AIT PART T O OF F YOUR R WORKPLACE. E . P A R Y O U W O R K P L AC Hercules s SLR R i is s a n national a l s supplier eilp r of o f H cre elu S L oita n u p securing, l,g lifting g and d rigging g equipment, ,tn s e cu r in tfi in a n r gi g in e q u ip m e and d a trusted d provider e r of o f s safety tefa y training g a n t ur ets p or iv di t niniar herculesslr.com h cre elu ss c.rl om The Canadian Design and Construction Report — November 2015 – 5