Niagara to GTA could be replaced by massive upgrades to existing road network
John Best
The Bay Observer
A proposed new highway link between Fort Erie and the 403 near Hamilton appears to have been nosed out in MTO recommendations by a massive widening program coupled with new roads in Niagara and the Hamilton area. Indeed, the recommendations point to the possibility of a new road across the escarpment between Hamilton and Burlington — something that triggered vocal public outrage in Halton in the past. Public comments are still being invited and a final decision on the project is still many months away. As the MTO approaches the end of a decade long environmental assessment of what was originally called the Mid-Peninsula Corridor, it has concluded that if nothing is done highway congestion will reach intolerable levels by 2031. That means it will be necessary to either build a new road through southern Niagara and Hamilton or to undertake massive widening of existing roads — including further widening of the Burlington Skyway. While admitting that the road widening option will create massive disruption along its route during a construction period that would run over several years; the option was narrowly favoured because the Mid-Pen option would threaten a number of sensitive wetlands and streams. The recommended option has three key components: • Extending the 406 from its current location at the west end of St Catharines to rejoin the QEW near Ft.Erie, providing a bypass of Niagara Falls and St Catharines. • Widening the QEW from St Catharines to the 407 Freeman Interchange at Burlington, including widening the Burlington Skyway to 10 lanes. • Construction of a relief road for the 403 running from Ancaster, across the escarpment to hook up with the 407 in Burlington. The study predicts severe congestion along the 403 through Hamilton and Aldershot; but widening is out of the question because of space constraints at Cootes Paradise. The recommended solution— a relief road from Ancaster across the escarpment to connect to the 407—has already attracted some negative comment Citizen’s Opposed to Paving the Escarpment (COPE).