Ford commits to building Hwy. 401 tunnel if re-elected
No price tag yet, but feasibility study underway, PC leader says
PC Leader Doug Ford is pledging to push forward with plans to build a tunnel under Highway 401 to tackle gridlock in the Greater Toronto Area, with a price tag that is yet to be determined.
As the incumbent premier, Ford has previously spoken in favour of building an underground expressway beneath the 401 to expand its capacity for drivers and transit.
At a news conference Friday, Ford said a re-elected Progressive Conservative would make the plan a reality.
"The easiest way to know if someone commutes on the 401, ask them what they think about building a tunnel," Ford said.
"These hard working families, they just want to get to work, get to soccer practice after work, get home, without the headache of bumper-to-bumper traffic from one end of the 401 to the other."
The Highway 401 tunnel expressway would extend from Brampton and Mississauga in the west to Markham and Scarborough in the east, the PC Party said in a press release, and it would include both vehicle and transit lanes.
Asked how much the project would cost, Ford didn't provide a precise figure but said the party is undertaking a feasibility study.
"We have the skill set, we have the expertise, we're going to get that tunnel built," he said.
"We're just waiting for the experts to come back and say, 'this is what it's gonna cost per kilometre.'"
Ford argued the tunnel will be worth it because gridlock costs the province's economy billions of dollars every year.
Parties react
Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles called the proposal a "fantasy" in a post on X, formerly Twitter, while promoting her pledge to remove tolls on the 407.
In an email, Stiles called the tunnel wasteful and pledged to "start investing in what actually matters" if elected premier.
"Doug Ford had seven years to hire doctors, fix schools, build homes. Instead, all he can do is waste taxpayer dollars on things no one asked for, like a fake tunnel under the 401," Stiles said.
In another social media post, the Green Party of Ontario suggested train infrastructure would be more effective at easing traffic congestion in the GTA.
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner called the proposal "just insulting" to Ontarians who are struggling with the high cost of living and lack of access to health care.
"Ontarians don't want a tunnel under the 401. They don't want Doug Ford to keep throwing money at the GTA when the rest of the province doesn't have affordable homes or healthcare," Schreiner said in a news release.
Asked to comment on Ford's pledge, Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said she would not build a tunnel under the 401 "but I will get you a family doctor."
Crombie also suggested the proposed tunnel was wasteful and "will never actually get built" in a post on X.
Eglinton Crosstown will open this year: Ford
Ford also pledged that a re-elected PC government would see the beleaguered Eglinton Crosstown open before the end of the year, though he said he couldn't give a precise date.
"As soon as everyone is trained, I'm really, really confident that we'll be opening this year," he said.
However, transit advocacy group TTCRiders expressed skepticism about the promise.
"Promised opening dates have come and gone before," TTCriders spokesperson Nigel Morton said in a news release, where he pointed out that the Finch West LRT — another Metrolinx project — also doesn't have a firm opening date.
Construction began on the 25-stop line in 2011. It was initially set to open in 2020, but a series of technical problems and associated cost overruns have plagued the project and repeatedly delayed its completion.
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With files from Shawn Jeffords