No. GC007/03For release - May 21, 2003
QUEENSTON — Industry Minister and Minister responsible for Infrastructure Allan Rock, Transport Minister David Collenette, and Bart Maves, MPP for Niagara Falls and Parliamentary Assistant to the Ontario Minister of Transportation today announced $325 million in funding for 14 projects under the Border Infrastructure Fund to improve border crossings in the Niagara and Sarnia regions. The projects cover a range of initiatives that will reduce border congestion and expand the capacity of the existing road infrastructure.
"These projects are an excellent example of partnership investment that will have real and positive impacts on the immediate communities as well as farther afield," stated Minister Rock. "Over the past decade, the Government of Canada's $12 billion investment has leveraged a total of $30 billion. This includes targeted investments in areas like critical improvements to our border infrastructure. It is also a reflection of the government's long-term commitment to address infrastructure issues in Canada."
"The funding will be used to improve some of the busiest highways and crossings in Ontario," said Minister Collenette. "These projects demonstrate the Government of Canada's commitment to developing a transportation system that meets environmental, social and economic goals and ultimately improves our quality of life."
"Ontario's border crossings and highways are vital for economic growth and prosperity, and we must ensure that goods, services and people move smoothly and safely through these borders," said Mr. Maves. "We will continue to work with our federal, municipal and private sector partners to reduce congestion and improve Ontario's transportation infrastructure in the Niagara and Sarnia regions."
The funding will be used in several projects:
At the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, $51 million will be invested, in partnership with the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission, to build a new lane on Highway 405 and on the bridge, dedicated to commercial traffic drivers already registered in a program where their security details are filed with customs authorities on both sides of the border. These pre-clearance programs, such as the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program, allow commercial drivers who have their paperwork in order to spend less time in line at the border. By giving these trucks a dedicated lane to the U.S Customs, safety will be improvlid, congestion reduced, and the efficiency of the crossing will be improved.
In partnership with the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority, $42 million will be invested in four projects at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie, Canada's third busiest crossing for passenger vehicles and trucks. At the bridge, there will be security and technology enhancements and upgrades to the commercial vehicle processing centre. Toll booths will be moved from the U.S. to Canada, freeing up space on the congested U.S. plaza in order to process truck traffic more efficiently. In addition, existing customs and immigration facilities will be relocated in order to free up space on the Canadian side of the border to improve traffic flow and reduce line-ups on the bridge.
Two projects, at a cost of $108 million will improve safety and reduce congestion on the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW). Starting this summer, the QEW will be widened to six lanes, from Mountain Road in Niagara Falls to west of Glendale Avenue in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The other project is the widening to six lanes of the QEW between Highway 406 and the Garden City Skyway Bridge through St Catharines.
$110 million will be invested in six projects to improve access to the Blue Water Bridge, in Point Edward, Ontario, Canada's second busiest and fastest growing truck crossing. Approximately 20 km of Highway 402 will be upgraded and rebuilt. Operational improvements such as new lighting and variable message signs will be installed on 402 near the bridge. Security improvements to better protect the bridge will be completed, in partnership with the Village of Point Edward. Highway 402 will be expanded to add a dedicated lane for commercial traffic drivers registered in pre-clearance programs. Highway 401 near London will be expanded to six lanes and improvements will be made to the 401/Wellington Road interchange. These projects will improve the efficiency of the Sarnia gateway, resulting in reduced congestion, reduced truck queues on Highway 402 and improved safety.
The Government of Canada's investment will come from the $600 million Border Infrastructure Fund, established in Budget 2001. Minister Rock announced the parameters of this fund in August 2002. The Border Infrastructure Fund has been designed to support the initiatives in the Smart Border Action Plan by contributing to projects that reduce border congestion, improve the flow of goods and services and expand infrastructure capacity over the medium term.
The provincial share will come from the Ontario government's five-year, $20 billion SuperBuild initiative. Since SuperBuild was established, more than $15 billion worth of capital investment is at work building highways and border crossings, hospitals, courthouses, classrooms, community centres, culture attractions, transit systems, water and sewage treatment plants and other public amenities across the province.
The Governments of Canada and Ontario are committed to working with project proponents to finalize agreements for project funding as quickly as possible. All projects will be subject to the relevant approval requirements under federal and provincial legislation, including the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act.
A backgrounder with further information on the projects announced today is included.
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Contacts:
Selena BeattieOffice of Minister RockOttawa(613) 995-9001
Rosemarie GodinaOffice of Minister KleesToronto(416) 327-1815
Amy ButcherPress SecretaryOffice of Minister CollenetteOttawa(613) 991-0700
Bob NicholsOntario Ministry of Transportation Communications BranchToronto(416) 327-1158
Infrastructure CanadaOttawa(613) 948-1148
For more information on the Government of Canada's Infrastructure programs, please visit our Web site at www.infrastructurecanada.gc.ca
For more information on the Government of Ontario's infrastructure programs, visit MTO's Web site at www.mto.gov.on.ca or Ontario SuperBuild's Web site at www.Superbuild.ca.
Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca. Subscribe to news releases and speeches at www.tc.gc.ca/e-news and keep up-to-date on the latest from Transport Canada.
This news release may be made available in alternative formats for persons with visual disabilities.
BACKGROUNDER
BORDER INFRASTRUCTUREFUND PROJECTS - ONTARIO
The $600-million Border Infrastructure Fund was established to help reduce border congestion, expand infrastructure capacity over the medium-term, support the implementation of the Smart Border Action Plan, and enhance safety and security at border crossings.
Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, Queenston
Queenston-Lewiston is Canada's fourth busiest crossing, operated by the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission, with over 1 million trucks crossing each year. Queenston-Lewiston and the Peace Bridge handled almost $64 billion of trade in 2002, up from $33 billion in 1993. It is also the ninth busiest Canada-U.S. passenger crossing handling 3.3 million vehicles a year or over 9,000 per day.
Truck traffic at the bridge incurs delays and queues frequently, which impede the efficiency of this crossing and create safety issues. Two projects, at a cost of $51 million, will be undertaken as follows:
in partnership with the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission, the provision of a new lane for commercial drivers registered in a pre-processing customs clearance program such as the Free and Secure Trade program (FAST) on the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge; and,
a dedicated lane on Highway 405 leading to the bridge for drivers registered in pre-processed customs clearance programs.
These two projects will improve efficiency by separating trucks that are registered in pre-processed low-risk custom clearance programs (such as FAST) from the regular stream of traffic. Expediting these trucks to U.S. Customs will reduce congestion, and improve safety, security and efficiency at this crossing. Costs will be shared by the provincial and federal governments ($17.8 million each) and the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission ($15 million) which is also investing in other improvements to ensure a smooth flow of people and goods.
Peace Bridge, Fort Erie
The Peace Bridge is Canada's third busiest crossing for passenger vehicles, handling 6.7 million autos and 1.35 million trucks crossing in 2001.
Four projects at a cost of $42 million will be funded by the federal government ($21 million) and the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority ($21 million). These projects will reduce delays and line-ups for truck traffic and improve safety. The capacity at the bridge is also a concern, and the Peace Bridge has initiated an environmental assessment to build a new crossing in the area.
The projects involve:
the redesign of the Canadian Plaza which includes the relocation of existing Canada Customs and Immigration facilities to permit expansion of lane capacity and the relocation of toll booths from the U.S. side, permitting expansion of U.S Customs inspections to handle more U.S bound trucks;
security enhancements;
technology enhancements, including intelligent transportation systems to better manage traffic and provide drivers with up-to-date information; and
commercial vehicle processing centre upgrades to support FAST.
The Peace Bridge projects will enhance operations for both Canada-bound and U.S.-bound traffic. Improving the operation of the plaza is important for efficiency, safety and security.
Queen Elizabeth Way
The Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) is the major trade corridor from the Greater Toronto Area to the Niagara region and is the principal trade corridor to four international crossings (Queenston-Lewiston, Rainbow, Whirlpool and Peace Bridges) over the Niagara River to New York state. Traffic flow is frequently congested during peak periods. As an older facility, it is not up to current design standards. The QEW carries an average of approximately 72,000 vehicles per day, of which about 17 per cent are commercial vehicles. Summer traffic is significantly higher, exceeding 90,000 vehicles per day. The traffic growth on the QEW has risen significantly over the past 10 years and is expected to continue to increase by 40 percent over the next 10 years.
Two projects at a cost of $108 million, will be funded by Canada and Ontario ($54 million each) and involve:
QEW widening to six lanes starting this summer - Mountain Road in Niagara Falls to west of Glendale Ave in Niagara-on-the-Lake; and
QEW widening - Hwy 406 to the Garden City Skyway Bridge in St. Catharines.
These two projects will reduce congestion and improve safety on the QEW, and by eliminating this major bottleneck, speed up truck traffic heading to the border.
The Blue Water Bridge, Point Edward
The Blue Water Bridge, operated by the Blue Water Bridge Authority and located in Point Edward, Ontario, is Canada's second busiest border crossing to the United States for trucks, with almost 4,300 daily truck crossings. It is also the sixth busiest for passenger crossings, with over 11,000 passenger vehicles per day. In 2002, 1.56 million trucks carrying nine per cent of Canada's trade with the United States crossed the bridge. It is the fastest growing Canada - U.S. commercial crossing, handling over $51 billion in goods in 2002, up from $20 billion in 1993.
Six projects will be undertaken at a total cost of $110 million, with a federal contribution of $55 million, a provincial contribution of $54 million, and a contribution of $1 million from the Village of Point Edward. The projects will improve access to the bridge, as well as help reduce the frequent truck congestion and traffic delays. Safety and security will also be improved at the Blue Water Bridge.
Five of the projects are:
the reconstruction of a 20 km stretch of Highway 402;
operational improvements on a 9 km stretch of Highway 402;
security enhancements at the bridge;
a dedicated truck lane on Highway 402; and
intelligent transportation systems including the installation of variable message signs on Highway 402.
These five projects are intended to improve the safety and efficiency of Highway 402 leading to the border crossing. This includes a dedicated lane for commercial traffic drivers already registered in a program where their security details are filed with Customs authorities on both sides of the border. These pre-clearance programs, such as the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program, allow commercial drivers who have their paperwork in order to spend less time in line at the border. However, both U.S and Canadian Customs reserve the right to inspect these pre-cleared trucks at any time. Speeding up the movement of commercial vehicles to U.S. Customs will reduce congestion, improve safety, increase security and improve efficiency at this border crossing.
In addition, improvements will be made to Highway 401 to improve access to Highway 402 leading to the Blue Water Bridge. Highway 401 is Ontario's principal export highway and this specific section of the highway serves as an important transportation corridor. Highway 401 connects to Highway 402 at London, which leads to the bridge, and the interchange handles a high volume of traffic. The free flow of traffic on Highway 401 that provides safe, reliable, on-time delivery of goods and services is critical for Ontario's competitiveness. In 2002, this section of Highway 401 carried over $167 billion of international trade. It provides connections to both the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor and the Blue Water Bridge in Point Edward. The roadway carries an average of approximately 52,000 vehicles per day of which about 30 per cent are commercial vehicles. Summer traffic is estimated to be 58,000 vehicles per day.
Highway 401 will be widened to six lanes and the Wellington Road/Highway 401 interchange and 401/402 interchange will be upgraded at a cost of over $20 million. This project will reduce congestion and improve safety at the 401/402 interchange and help speed up truck traffic heading to the border.
The total of $325 million includes a five per cent contingency allowance of $15 million. This is a typical and prudent business practice to accommodate design and other changes in complex infrastructure projects. These funds will not be spent unless required.
May 2003
