The Durham, Ont., highway extension will be open to traffic in early January 2018, as part of the second and final phase of Ontario’s Highway 407 construction project.
An additional 9.6 km of highway will stretch from Harmony Road to Taunton Road in Clarington, a municipality in the Region of Durham. Interchanges will be located at Enfield Road and Taunton Road.
Blackbird Infrastructure Group is the selected proponent to design, build and maintain the project, which aims to improve traffic flow and reduce congestion in the Durham Region.
Steven Del Duca, minister of transportation, Jeff Leal, MPP for Peterborough, and Granville Anderson, MPP for Durham, were in Clarington to announce the opening.
“The opening of another stretch of Highway 407 will have a significant impact on improving the daily commute and quality of life for Ontario families,” said Del Duca.
Phase one included the completion of Highway 412, formerly the West Durham link, on June 20, 2016. The highway sees approximately 40,000 vehicles per day, according to the province.
Highway 418, formerly the East Durham Link, is scheduled to open by 2020. This final phase, which began in 2015, will connect Highway 407 to Highway 35/115. It is intended to provide another north-south connection from Highway 407 to Highway 401.
The completed Highway 407 will run east-west from Brock Road in Pickering, Ont., to Highway 35/155.
“Our government is delivering on this key project that will provide Durham Region with an efficient alternate option for travelling, while simultaneously helping fund other key transportation infrastructure in this region and across the province,” said Del Duca.
Tolling is expected to begin upon opening. Rates for Highway 407 and Highway 412 are lower than those on Highway 407 ETR. Revenue generated from tolls will be used to fund various projects, including transit and infrastructure.
SOURCE: ONTARIO MINISTRY OF TRANSPORTATION
