Premier Doug Ford is pushing for a major infrastructure project he says will help ease gridlock and boost the province’s economy: a tunnel under Highway 401 in the Greater Toronto Area.
Ford made the comments this week while attending the International Plowing Match in the Niagara Region, saying he believes Prime Minister Mark Carney will support the idea as part of Canada’s national infrastructure priorities.
The premier argued that gridlock on Highway 401, North America’s busiest highway, costs the economy an estimated $58 billion annually in lost productivity.
While Carney has already identified modular nuclear reactors and critical mineral development in Ontario as national priorities, Ford is confident the 401 tunnel will be included in the next round of federal projects.
He has also pitched a deep-sea port at James Bay and expanded GO train service as additional priorities.
Ford said the tunnel would not only improve traffic flow but also strengthen Canada’s trade corridor, with nearly half of the country’s GDP tied to goods moving through the Toronto region.