Hwy. 427 to be expanded at Steeles

TORONTO - The Ontario government is planning a major overhaul of a seven-kilometre section of Hwy. 427.

The project, to be conducted over the next three years, will involve infrastructure work on the highway between Campus Rd.-Fasken Dr. to Steeles Ave. in north Etobicoke and will include a lane expansion from five to eight. It was also involved the addition of one High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane running in each direction.

According to the Ministry of Transportation, the project will cost $83 million and be completed by the fall of 2017. it will also include eight bridge repairs and the installation of new lighting and median barriers.

The project will create or sustain 830 construction jobs, the government said.

Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca insisted the project will not only relieve congestion in that area of the GTA, but will also be a positive step when it comes to the big picture of GTA infrastructure improvement.

“I think it’s part of a larger piece,” Del Duca said Tuesday. “It will definitely help here in the west end ... of the GTA. I use the 427 on a regular basis, and many people in my own community do as well.”

He said both the lane expansion and the addition of the HOV lanes will help ease congestion.

Ministry observations show that “the use continues to increase, and that HOV lanes provide substantial time savings during” rush hour, Del Duca said.

The HOV lanes, which are lanes separate from the others and designated for cars with at least two people, commercial vehicles, motorcycles and taxis, could one day end up being High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes, he added.

“The work that’s going to take place here ... (could) essentially permit the future changing or transforming of these HOV lanes to HOT in terms of what’s needed from an electrical and technical standpoint,” Del Duca said. “The province does plan to move forward with introducing HOT lanes.

“We certainly need to do some more work on exactly where they need to be placed, but certainly there are studies that demonstrate that HOT lanes have the dual benefit of both providing revenue (and) also helping with driver behaviour and reducing congestion.”
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