The Ontario government is moving forward with building Highway 413, a new 400-series highway and transit corridor across Halton, Peel and York regions.
The corridor will extend from Highway 400 in the east to the Highway 401/407 express toll route (ETR) interchange area in the west and will include a four-to-six-lane 400 series highway, separate infrastructure dedicated for transit and passenger stations, and intelligent transportation and truck parking.
By 2031, the overall traffic on this route is expected to exceed 300,000 vehicle trips per day while cutting commute times by up to 30 minutes for someone travelling the full length of the route when compared to the time it would take via Highways 401 and 400.
Redundant road
However, opponents of the road says it will add to greenhouse gas emissions, and is redundant, being so close to the 407. Environmental Defence says the “unnecessary mega highway that would pave over farm, forests, wetlands and a portion of the Greenbelt and cost taxpayers billions. It will also add over 17 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 when cutting emissions is more urgent than ever.”
Environmental Defence imagePreliminary design of the preferred route has begun. During construction, Highway 413 is expected to employ up to 3,500 workers each year and generate up to $350 million in annual real gross domestic product (GDP).
“For manufacturers, an efficient transportation network that facilitates the efficient movement of goods and employees to and from their operations, is critical to success. Congested highways around GTA continue to put manufacturing in the region at a disadvantage by increasing costs of shipments, creating uncertainty in delivery times, lengthening commute times for employees, and negatively impacting our environment,” said Mathew Wilson, senior vice-president, policy, government relations and Ontario division, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters.
“CME strongly support investments, such as the 413, that will improve the movement of goods and people throughout the region and reduce waste and inefficiencies.”
“Highway 413 represents a crucial, long-term investment for the Province of Ontario, which will attract future investment and jobs,” said Stephen Laskowski, president of the Ontario Trucking Association.
“Highway 413 will fill infrastructure gaps in Ontario’s roadway links to the benefit of the province’s transportation and logistics hubs in the Northwestern GTA that serve as the epicentre of Canada’s supply chain. The highway will also provide congestion relief for Highway 401 and add redundancy to the GTA’s 400-series network, significantly improving transit times for goods movement by truck and access to Central and Northern Ontario while strengthening the connection for Canada’s busiest truck-rail intermodal facilities.”
“With Halton, Peel and York regions all set to grow at incredible speed, our government is saying yes to building the roads and highways that will keep these communities moving,” said Premier Doug Ford. “Highway 413 will create thousands of jobs while saving commuters hours of gridlock every day. This project is a key part of our plan that’s building Ontario.”
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