News Release: New Highway 404 Extension to Benefit Newmarket

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New Highway 404 Extension to Benefit Newmarket

NEWMARKET — Julia Munro, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation and York North MPP, and York Regional Chair Bill Fisch were on hand to open a new four-lane extension on Highway 404 from Davis Drive to Green Lane, improving traffic flow and safety in the area.

"This project is part of the ministry's efforts to keep goods and people moving safely and efficiently on Ontario's roads," Transportation Minister Brad Clark said.

"York is Ontario's fastest growing region," Munro said. "Extending this vital transportation link will help to ease gridlock and support continued prosperity in this community."

An innovative provincial-municipal partnership between the Ontario Government and York Region made this project possible. Ontario invested $13 million of the $15 million construction costs, with York Region contributing $2 million.

"Through SuperBuild, we are making the province's highways safer and more accessible for the people of Ontario," Finance Minister and Minister responsible for SuperBuild, Jim Flaherty said. "Projects like these are key to modernizing and upgrading the province's infrastructure."

"Improved traffic flow is a priority for all motorists traveling this stretch of the highway," Fisch said. "The region will benefit from these improvements to Highway 404."

"This work will help manage the dramatic increase in traffic demands in our area," Mayor of East Gwillimbury James Young added. "The Town looks forward to the approval of the urgently needed extension to Ravenshoe Road in the very near future."

Improvements included:

Extension of Highway 404 as a four-lane divided highway 2.9 km from Davis Drive to Green Lane;
Reconstruction of Green Lane from a two-lane rural gravel road to a four-lane roadway from east of Leslie Street to Woodbine Avenue (funded by York Region);
Additional interchange ramps to and from the north at the Highway 404/Davis Drive interchange;
New structure and ramps to and from the south at Green Lane.

The Ministry of Transportation started this project in September 2000, and accelerated construction this past fall to open the road months ahead of the scheduled June 2002 completion date.

"I'm pleased that the Ministry is committed to addressing York Region's current transportation and future growth needs," Frank Klees, MPP, Oak Ridges said. "Extending Highway 404 strengthens our growing community."

This extension complements the widening of Highway 404 from four to six lanes from Major MacKenzie Drive to Aurora Road, which was opened to traffic in December 2001.

The province has invested nearly $1 billion in highway infrastructure projects over the past year. By the end of this fiscal year, the Ontario Government will have invested more than $6.5 billion in highway capital projects.