Update on fate of halted GTA-West highway project expected by end of January
$14M spent on suspended EA

Mississauga.com
Dec. 9, 2017
Roger Belgrave

The province is now promising a long-awaited update on the fate of the proposed GTA West highway, passing through Peel, by the end of January.

It’s the latest word from the Minister of Transportation’s office since abruptly announcing in December 2015 the suspension of Environmental Assessment (EA) work on the proposal for a freeway from Vaughan in the east to the Hwy. 401/407 ETR interchange in the west.

When Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca put the brakes on that groundwork — helping determine a proposed route for the highway that would travel through part of north Peel — he left municipalities, landowners, environmentalists and other interested parties in limbo.

Documents now obtained by the Ontario Progressive Conservative (PC) Party through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests show the government has so far spent more than $14 million on the environmental assessment process that was halted to reassess a project many now suspect the Liberals may never put back on the road.

“To suggest that you would get essentially three quarters of the way through an environmental assessment and be willing to walk away from $14 million is just an example of such waste,” said Dufferin-Caledon MPP Sylvia Jones.

Jones is the PC infrastructure critic and filed the FOI request earlier this year to find out how much the government has spent on EA work conducted for this proposal.

Jones, who represents communities the roadway is proposed to pass through, said she has heard all too clearly municipal frustration with the government’s prolonged assessment suspension.

Municipal development planning and landowners along the proposed route have been frozen in uncertainty for two years, she explained.

“In Caledon, I can point to specific farms that are saying ‘we need to know where this is going to be and if it’s going to be, so we can plan,’” she remarked.

At the time, Del Duca put a stop to the EA, he said the project was undergoing an internal review and later formed an advisory panel to assess potential alternatives to the proposal.

At the end of November, the ministry quietly posted online that the panel’s report had been submitted and the government would respond in 60 days.

While there were those frustrated by the EA suspension, conservationists applauded.

It is widely thought the government’s commitment to the long-proposed highway is no longer compatible with the Liberal government’s focus on protecting the environment, fighting climate change and transportation technology innovation.

“Be straight with people,” remarked Jones. “If you’re going to actually stop it, then stop it.”

Suspension of an EA three-quarters finished is unprecedented, according to Jones, who also noted the completion of an environmental assessment doesn’t obligate the government to move forward with the project.

According the minister’s office, the government has also spent $217,480 on the advisory panel report — $161,091 was provided in remuneration for panel members and $56,389 paid for professional services to support panel’s analysis and report.

The PC election platform recently released by Leader Patrick Brown included a commitment to complete the EA.