Ford government will not ‘take no for an answer’ on Highway 401 tunnel plan

Ontario’s proscription curate says the authorities volition not “take nary for an answer” arsenic it forges up with the aboriginal stages of a program to passageway an expressway underneath Highway 401 done Toronto.

The program was archetypal floated by Premier Doug Ford weeks agone erstwhile helium announced the commencement of a feasibility survey to see if a 50-kilometre passageway from Brampton to Scarborough would assistance with the region’s postulation woes.

When helium announced the plan, Ford said the survey would find details similar the nonstop magnitude of the way but that helium wanted to physique it immoderate the results of the work.

Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria revealed interior enactment is already underway connected the task — with feasibility engagements acceptable to tally “over the adjacent months, years” for the tunnel.

“We’re looking to the experts successful the tract to assistance america recognize and admit what it’s going to instrumentality to survey the feasibility of this,” Sarkaria said successful an extended interrogation connected Focus Ontario.

“We cognize the urgency, fixed the gridlock radical are facing, truthful we got to enactment close distant to spot what we tin perchance bash to look astatine this project.”

Government officials antecedently indicated the survey itself would beryllium done by a 3rd enactment but volition person interior enactment from the Ministry of Transportation.

The passageway would beryllium the latest infrastructure task nether the Ford government’s assertive transport enlargement plan. As portion of that file, Sarkaria’s bureau is overseeing the operation of 2 caller highways — the 413 and Bradford Bypass — on with the Ontario Line and respective airy obstruction routes.

The curate said the existent authorities of Toronto’s grinding gridlock was unacceptable and that thing was disconnected the array to alleviate it.

“What we cognize close present is the 401 is 1 of the astir congested highways successful each of North America, not conscionable Canada, not conscionable Toronto,” helium said. “It continues to beryllium a situation and we request solutions — and this feasibility survey volition perfectly look astatine that.”

Critics person said Ford’s tunnelled imagination is an unrealistic task that volition instrumentality decades and tens of billions of dollars to complete.

When the program was announced, the Ontario NDP called it a “silly thought from a authorities that has tally retired of ideas” and the Liberals labelled it a “half-baked, back-of-the-napkin scheme.”

One engineering adept said information requirements, including ventilation, would marque gathering a passageway nether the road analyzable and costly.

“You person to physique shafts regularly truthful you tin person a ventilation strategy that clears retired the fume (if there’s a crash),” Shoshanna Saxe, a prof successful the University of Toronto’s civilian and mineral engineering department, said successful an interrogation connected Focus Ontario.

“You besides person to physique cross-connections betwixt the 2 tunnels, truthful if there’s a occupation connected 1 side, radical tin tally to the other. And those you physique each 250, 350 metres. You request to person immense fans, it’s a massive, monolithic undertaking; it would instrumentality a procreation to build.”

Sarkaria pointed retired the state has already has acquisition tunnelling nether Highway 401, albeit arsenic portion of a little important task than a 50-kilometre road tunnel.

“We person tunnelled nether the 401, with the Scarborough Subway Extension without immoderate disruption to traffic,” helium said. “So we cognize that we tin bash this. We person the feasibility survey to assistance america determination guardant connected this and we’re not going to instrumentality nary for an answer.”

Focus Ontario premiers astatine 5:30 p.m. connected Saturdays connected Global TV.