June 20, 2006

Road Building

Roadbuilders laud new highway construction

FAZEENA SAMAD

staff writer

TORONTO

The Ontario government will spend $3.4 billion in the next five years on road construction through its Southern Ontario Highways Program (SOHP).

The plan will see investments in 130 kilometres of new highway, 64 new bridges and repairs to 1,600 kilometres of highway and 200 bridges.

Terry Willms, president of the Ontario Road Builders’ Association, applauds the program, saying it gives the road building industry an opportunity to plan for the future.

“Being able to plan more than one year at a time can improve our efficiencies and increase our productivity by investing in more innovation,” Willms said.

“And the bottom line is that we will become more competitive, and we all know that being more competitive is essential in today’s ever changing market place.

“So we are committed to delivering this kind of program with the best of quality, safety and innovation.”

Minister of Transportation Donna Cansfield referred to the past several years of infrastructure in Ontario as the “lost decade”, saying much work needs to be done to bring the highways up to standard — a program that will be successful only if there is input from industry stakeholders.

Terry Willms

Willms added the layout of the long-term plan and its allowance for industry members to assemble the necessary resources and hire and train employees in sub-trades to better meet demands for project tendering “down the line” makes it effective.

Some of the projects included in the SOHP are already underway in the Etobicoke area — the westbound express lanes and the eastbound collector lanes between Jane Street and Kipling Avenue and the eastbound collector lanes between Avenue Road and Leslie St.

Construction plans under the program also include lane expansion for: highway 401 (from four to six) from Woodstock to Cambridge, a four to six-lane expansion on highway 401 from Windsor to Tilbury, and expansion of highway 7 from highway 417 to Carleton from two to four lanes.

The province also plans construction of more High Occupancy Vehicle lanes, on the QEW from Oakville to Burlington, and on Highway 417 from Highway 416 to Palladium Drive in Ottawa.

The program also includes an expansion for the 410 from Bovaird Drive to highway 10 in Brampton and highway 404 from Green Lane to Ravenshoe Road in York Region.

Willms says his association will meet the extensive construction demands for the five-year program, both in terms of capabilities and labour.

“The nice thing about the long-term plan is that it’s detailed enough that we know where work is going to take place,” he explained. “In terms of labour, I am not going to deny that it is a crunch right now, but I think with the way the plan is laid out, we feel comfortable that we will meet that.”

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