Letter to The Honourable Doug Ford Premier of Ontario: HWY 69

On April 7th, Vinod and Shilpa Patel lost their lives in a tragic accident on Highway 69. Two days later, another person was killed on the same highway. Both accidents happened along the 68-kilometre stretch of Highway 69 that remains incomplete. It is a stretch of highway that represents a harmful trend and has claimed the lives of many people.

I knew Vinod and Shilpa. I met them on many occasions. They were kind, caring and sincere people. My thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends. It is a difficult time for the Gujarati community in Sudbury. They have lost two strong pillars of their community.

These deaths should be a reckoning not just in Sudbury, but throughout our province and at Queen’s Park. The four-laning of Highway 69 has been studied, planned and deferred for too long. The provincial government’s delays have caused immeasurable harm to people.

The need to complete Highway 69 is not a new concern. In 2019, the federal government committed $169 million for the four-laning of Highway 69. The funding was through the Building Canada fund. The fund called for a 50-50 partnership with provinces, with provinces required to fully match the federal funding amount.

Seven years later, the highway is still not completed. And notably, the province has yet to commit their 50% matching portion. As of today, the government’s timelines for Highway 69 has construction starting in 2029 and ending in 2037.

That is almost 40 years since the provincial government first announced it would four-lane the highway.

Over the past two weeks, I have met with key federal Cabinet Ministers regarding Highway 69 including the Ministers of Transportation, Infrastructure and Finance. In these meetings, I have asked that our government keep available the $169 million of federal funding, despite the Ontario government’s stalled action on the project.

Let’s all agree that decisive action that protects the lives of the people of northern Ontario and upholds the safety of thousands who use this critical artery every day should be our collective focus.

I am calling on you and your government to take immediate action:

1. Commit the funding required to complete the four-laning of Highway 69.

2. Direct the Ministry of Transportation and Treasury Board to adopt an accelerated construction timeline.

3. Treat the completion of this highway as the public safety emergency it is.

Your government made this commitment during last year’s provincial election. It was on the first page of your campaign platform: “widening of Highway 69 from two to four lanes from Parry Sound to Sudbury.” And last spring when you were in Sudbury, you committed to getting the highway done “as quickly as possible.”

The residents of northern Ontario do not deserve further delays and several more years of preventable risk. They deserve a provincial government that acts on their commitments and cares about the safety and security of the people who travel Highway 69.

Sincerely,

Viviane Lapointe
Member of Parliament Sudbury
Chair of Northern Ontario Caucus