Premier Ford says talks are ongoing, but still no completion date for Hwy. 69 expansion

Still no date to complete Hwy. 69 expansion Ontario Premier Doug Ford said this week there is still no firm date for expanding Hwy. 69 to four lanes between Sudbury and Toronto.

In Sudbury on Monday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford was asked when the four-laning of Highway 69 would be completed, a project that has been decades in the making.

The premier was asked for a timeline to complete the expansion of the highway.

"Highway 69, I've been all over them like an 800-pound gorilla on this one," Ford said.

"It's in the engineering stages right now, in consultation with three First Nations communities, because we have to acquire their land. And I'll get you the exact date on how it's going, but I just asked the First Nations community, let's go, let's move."

The project of expanding the roughly 400-kilometre stretch of roadway from Sudbury to Toronto into four lanes began decades ago.

The original completion date was 2017, while the most recent timeline was 2021. While much work has been completed, there are still 68 kilometres left to go.

Const. Brandon Charlebois of the West Parry Sound OPP said that from Oct. 29, 2023, to Oct. 29, 2024, there were 123 collisions in the section of Highway 69 that hasn’t been four-laned, including one fatality.

One northern Ontario MPP said the statistics show the urgent need to get the job done.

"It is one of the most dangerous highways in all of Ontario and I would say, the statistics speak for themselves," said NDP Nickel Belt MPP France Gelinas.

"There’s really very little, time, effort and energy being put into this project."

Highway 69 runs through three First Nations: Henvey Inlet, Magnetewan and Shawanaga First Nations. The communities own the construction firm Shwe Miikaan, which has signed a contract with SNC-Lavalin to continue the work expanding Highway 69.

While the Chiefs of Magnetewan and Shawanaga First Nations were unavailable Tuesday for interviews, in a phone call to CTV News, they said there had been communication with the province about Highway 69.

We didn't hear back from Henvey Inlet First Nation.

Gelinas said she has asked the province about the status of the project but has been told very little.

"My community would be so thrilled if I could share something about it," she said.

"I can never get a briefing. I can never get any transparency or accountability that what they're saying is actually happening."

Gelinas said the lack of movement on the project is a lack of political will.

"There are three First Nations that are more than willing to partner with you to get this done," she said.

"We have the knowledge. We have the skills. Let's get that done."