No. H055/06For release June 22, 2006
Highway 401 Improvements Benefit Travellers and Ontario's Economy
WINDSOR — Federal Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, the
Honourable Lawrence Cannon and Ontario Transportation Minister Donna Cansfield,
announced today the start of phase three improvements to Highway 401 in Essex
County.
The two levels of government are investing more than $61 million to improve a 10
kilometre stretch of Highway 401 between Highway 77 and Essex Road 27.
Construction is now under way and includes the following:
Widening Highway 401 from four to six lanes to reduce congestion;
Installing a concrete median barrier, drainage system and paved median and
shoulders to improve safety;
Replacing the St. Joachim Road (French Line Road) bridge to improve visibility
on both Highway 401 and St. Joachim Road, including widening and repaving of the
ramps;
Widening the Ruscom River Bridge to improve driving conditions; and
Improving the Windsor South Commercial Vehicle Inspection Facility.
"This project will improve traffic flow and provide safety improvements to this
important stretch of Highway 401 leading to Canada's busiest border crossing,"
said Minister Cannon. "The Government of Canada and its partners look forward to
the completion of this great project."
"The future of our province depends on the success of the Ontario economy, and
the Highway 401 corridor is an important link to Ontario's largest international
border crossing that carries more than 10,000 trucks and $323 million worth of
goods per day," said Minister Cansfield. "Along with our partners, we are
investing almost $500 million in the Windsor area alone."
The first phase of the Highway 401 Windsor to Tilbury project was completed in
November 2005, and involved widening and improving of Highway 401 from Essex
Road 42 and Highway 77. Drivers have already benefited from improved safety and
traffic flow on this important stretch of highway with the additional lanes,
concrete median barrier and improved signage. The second phase of improvements
to Highway 401 from Puce Road to Manning Road, expected to be completed this
Fall, involves widening from four to six lanes, improving both Manning Road and
Puce Road interchanges and building a median barrier. Design of the fourth and
fifth phases will follow.
This project is funded by the governments of Canada and Ontario under the
Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program (SHIP). Under SHIP, both governments
are investing a total of $336 million for highway improvement projects.
This year, the Government of Ontario is investing over $1.4 billion in highway
improvements through its five-year ReNew Ontario infrastructure investment plan.
The Ontario government has allocated an additional $400 million under Move
Ontario, which municipalities may use for improvements to municipal roads and
bridges.
A backgrounder on Canada and Ontario improving Highway 401 in Essex County is
attached.
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Contacts:
Natalie Sarafian
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Transport,
Infrastructure and Communities,
Ottawa
(613) 991-0700
Neal Kelly
Office of the
Ontario Minister of
Transportation, Toronto
(416) 327-9134
Linda Licari
Communications
Transport Canada, Ottawa
(613) 993-0055
Bob Nichols
Communications Branch
Ontario Ministry of Transportation, Toronto
(416) 327-1158
Transport Canada is online at www.tc.gc.ca. Subscribe to news releases and speeches at apps.tc.gc.ca/listserv/ 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
CANADA AND ONTARIO MAKING IMPROVEMENTS TO HIGHWAY 401 IN
ESSEX COUNTY
Highway 401 Widening from Windsor to Tilbury
Canada and Ontario are investing $278 million to widen Highway 401.
The work involves five phases:
Phase One – Essex Road 42 to Highway 77
Investment of $62 million for this section of Highway 401 is now complete and
improvements include:
Widening Highway 401 from four to six lanes to reduce congestion;
Installing a concrete median barrier to enhance safety; and
Improving the Essex Road 42 and Highway 77 interchanges including commuter
parking lots, new illumination and turning lanes on both Highway 77 and Essex
Road 42.
Phase Two – Manning Road to Puce Road
The $51-million investment for improvements began in the spring of 2005 with
completion expected in Fall 2006. In addition to widening from four to six
lanes, improvements include:
Installing a concrete median barrier to enhance safety;
Adding a new service road and commuter parking lot at the Manning Road
interchange; and
Improving the Manning Road and Puce Road interchanges to increase safety and
traffic flow.
Phase Three ‐ Highway 77 to Essex Road 27
With an investment of more than $61 million, work has now started and is
expected to be complete in 2007. Components include:
Widening Highway 401 from four to six lanes;
Installing a concrete median barrier, drainage system and paved median and
shoulders to enhance safety;
Replacing the St. Joachim Road (French Line Road) bridge and reconstructing
the ramps including the addition of interchange illumination;
Widening the Ruscom River Bridge;
Rehabilitating the Rochester Townline Road and 3rd Concession Road underpass
structures;
Upgrading highway signs; and
Upgrading the Windsor South truck inspection station to a commercial vehicle
inspection facility.
Phase Four – Highway 3 to Manning Road
The detailed design is under way.
Phase Five – Puce Road to Essex Road 27
Detailed design is expected to start in early 2007.
Phases one to three are being funded through the Strategic Highway
Infrastructure Program (SHIP), a joint federal-provincial funding program for
transportation infrastructure improvements in Ontario.
Through the Border Infrastructure Fund, the Canada and Ontario governments are
undertaking the detailed design and construction of the phase four section from
Highway 3 to Manning Road as part of the Let's Get Windsor-Essex Moving
strategy.
Let's Get Windsor–Essex Moving Strategy
The Let's Get Windsor-Essex Moving strategy is a $300 million joint investment
between the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario to jointly invest
$300 million for several short- and medium-term projects to improve traffic flow
to existing crossings and address congestion and security issues at the
Windsor-Detroit Gateway.
Recently completed projects announced as part of the strategy include:
A pedestrian overpass on Huron Church Road at Assumption High School;
Intersection improvements on Highway 3 at Outer Drive and Walker Road;
Four intelligent transportation systems cameras to improve traffic management,
video monitoring, and driver information; and
Advance work at Grand Marais and Walker Road to facilitate traffic staging
during the upcoming Walker Road construction.
Construction is set to begin in the summer of 2006 with substantial completion
by 2007 on:
Advance utility relocation for the Walker Road road-rail grade separation; and
Intersection improvements on Huron Church Road at Industrial Drive to
facilitate access to the U.S. Customs truck pre-processing facility.
Several more projects will complete environmental assessment and detail design
in early 2007:
Highway 401 widening from east of Highway 3 to west of Manning Road;
Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Plaza master plan improvements; and
Environmental assessment of a road-rail grade separation on Howard Avenue
south of Memorial Drive.
Border Transportation Partnership
The governments of Canada, the United States, Ontario and Michigan are moving
forward with a Border Transportation Partnership to implement a long-range
transportation strategy to address challenges at the Windsor-Detroit Gateway.
The Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario are leading the Canadian
portion of the Detroit River International Crossing study, which is seeking a
long-term solution to border transportation issues. This thorough and systematic
study is coordinated with a similar study in the U.S. Together, these studies
will allow the governments to decide on the location for a new international
crossing and provide the documentation necessary for approvals under
environmental legislation in both countries.
For more information on the status of the Let's Get Windsor-Essex Moving
Strategy and the Detroit River International Crossing study, go to http://www.mto.gov.on.ca./- 30 -
Contacts:
Natalie Sarafian
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Transport,
Infrastructure and Communities,
Ottawa
(613) 991-0700
Neal Kelly
Office of the
Ontario Minister of
Transportation, Toronto
(416) 327-9134
Linda Licari
Communications
Transport Canada, Ottawa
(613) 993-0055
Bob Nichols
Communications Branch
Ontario Ministry of Transportation, Toronto
(416) 327-1158
www.tc.gc.ca
www.mto.gov.on.ca
