Support grows for divided TransCanada highway

The need to upgrade the TransCanada into a divided highway in Ontario is long overdue, say municipal leaders throughout the northern stretch of the province.

The numbers of logging and transport trucks that use the TransCanada Highway, combined with the blustery winters of Northern Ontario only reinforce that need, the leaders say.

On the heels of The Working Forest commissioned study entitled "How Much and When – A vision for Ontario’s TransCanada highway from North Bay to the Manitoba Border", a number of municipal councils throughout Northern Ontario have been passing resolutions, urging the Ontario government to finally move forward in dividing the highway.

"We have one of the highest volumes of traffic condensed on a two-lane road over an expansive geographic area," said Alan Spacek, mayor of the Town of Kapuskasing. "On top of that, when you consider the weather conditions we get in Northern Ontario, the potential safety aspect of this project is immeasurable."

The findings suggest the work could be done at a cost of about $600 million, paid for over 25 years.

Ontario is the only province which doesn’t have a divided TransCanada Highway through it.

"It would be a huge undertaking but it needs to start," said Spacek. "What I like about is that work would begin simultaneously across the north. I’m very supportive of the project."

Spacek said there would be "immediate benefits," not only enhancing motorists’ safety but also making Northern Ontario more inviting for tourists and new industry.

"Access is a key for economic development," he said. "When companies are considering setting up in your community, one of the first questions they ask is, how do we get to your location? If you have a divided highway going by your community, those are the kind things that give us with a level playing field with other jurisdictions."

Jules Gravel, reeve of Armstrong Township, said the needed for a divided TransCanada Highway has been a sticking point for his municipality and surrounding communities dating back to the 1970s.

"The government always said it was not warranted in the north, but times have changed," said Gravel. "Today, when people want to go north, they are increasingly looking past the Muskokas and coming up here."

Gravel said four-laning the TransCanada from North Bay to the Manitoba border "would mean safer roads and probably an increase in the amount of tourism traffic. One of the biggest problems we have on our roads is that in the summer, a lot of people come north with their campers and with the transports and tractor-trailers, you have an increase the flow of heavy trucks. That slows traffic and causes a lot of problems with accidents."

Michael Power, mayor of Greenstone, said his municipal council is among those that recently forwarded a motion to the Ontario government, supporting the implementation of the TransCanada study.

"The amount of truck traffic we do have is incredible," said Power. "It seems we get a lot of road closures in winter, especially with the two-lane highways, the heavy traffic and kind of weather we get."

Those types of challenges pose a disincentive when trying to attract industry and tourism, he said. With increased border restrictions in recent years, Power has noticed a steady decline in the number of visitors from the United States.

"We’ve seen a drop-off in the number of hunters and anglers from the U.S. Americans aren’t as keen on passports and hassles at the border. So we need to begin concentrating and selling Northern Ontario to people in southern Ontario."

Power said providing the travelling public with the "higher degree of safety" that a divided highway offers would appeal to both industry and tourists. ◊