A New Highway is Moving Forward in the GTA

Insauga.com
June 21, 2019
Dylan Olley

Commuting may become easier for residents in the GTA. If they prefer to commute via vehicle, that is.

The Ontario government is resuming the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Greater Toronto Area West corridor. This new highway will, ideally, improve travel times and reduce traffic build up across the GTA.

The highway, plans for which were shelved under the previous government, was originally planned to connect Highway 400 in Vaughan to Highway 407 in the Milton area. It will run through parts of Peel.

Jeff Yurek, the Minister of Transportation was joined by Amarjot Sandhu, MPP for Brampton West to announce that the government is resuming the EA at the point it left off in 2015. This comes after a motion was passed in the legislature earlier this month on June 4, calling on the government to immediately resume the EA.

“Ontario is open for business and our government will continue to invest and build new, efficient infrastructure to move people and goods faster,” said Yurek. “Resuming the EA for the GTA West Corridor will ensure we can build more transportation infrastructure in the future that meets the needs of the people as our economy grows.”

There will also be a Public Information Centre this fall, giving the public an opportunity to review and comment on the preferred route.

“I’m pleased to see our government is listening to the needs of the region and resuming the environmental assessment for the GTA West Corridor,” said Sandhu.

“As our region continues to grow this study will ensure our highways are working for businesses, commuters and families across the Greater Golden Horseshoe. While being in touch with commuters and people in trucking industry in Brampton West, I shared their concerns with Minister Jeff Yurek, who was very kind and assured the ministry would help as much as it can to resolve the issue, which was long overdue to improve the region’s transportation network, reduce travel times and help alleviate traffic congestion in Brampton and across the GTA.”

With the EA starting up again, the Ministry of Transportation and the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) will no longer proceed with the Northwest GTA Corridor Identification Study.

The assessment is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.