The Greater Toronto Area west corridor study’s alternative 4-3 is a road to nowhere, according to Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott.
He spoke in the Ontario legislature on Nov. 23, the first day possible, since the Oct. 6 provincial election.
“For more than a year, the council of the Town of Halton Hills has been raising objections to alternative 4-3,” he said. “The Region of Halton council has expressed solidarity with town council, as have I.” He questioned the cost of the project, in light of the current economic realities. “The town has suggested alternatives, like the widening of the 401, which would undoubtedly be less expensive, and thus more practical in today’s strained fiscal environment.”
Arnott called upon the Minister of Transportation to consider other, more urgent transportation priorities in Wellington-Halton Hills. The new minister, Bob Chiarelli, was in the legislature during Arnott’s statement. On Aug. 2, Arnott publicly called for the suspension of the GTA west corridor study, pending a review by the new Minister of Transportation after the election.
Days later, the government put the brakes on the study, acknowledging there needed to be more consultation.