Comptroller’s report: Ontario ignored experts in construction of Highway 413

Ontario’s Comptroller General says the province ignored experts when it decided to prioritize construction of eight highways, including Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass.

Both highways were key slabs in Prime Minister Doug Ford’s re-election campaign in the spring.

Bonnie Lysyk said in today’s annual report that the Minister of Transport has instructed the Ministry of Finance to postpone six high-priority highways previously approved by the Finance Committee.

Lysyk also found that the ministry failed to inform the government that the minister’s decision conflicted with the recommendations of experts who said they did not recommend four of these highways at the time. did.

The Comptroller General also found that the department did not have a toll collection strategy when the state removed tolls from Highway 412 and Highway 418 before recovering those costs.

Ford announced the elimination of these tolls in April, one month before the election.

“Our audit concluded that the department consistently and effectively did not plan and prioritize highway projects based on the state’s infrastructure needs,” Lysyk said in its annual report. I was there,” he said.

“It was found that the Minister’s directive recommended that the Ministry of Finance postpone higher-ranking highway expansion projects in favor of lower-ranking projects without contacting the Ministry of Finance… This subject matter expert is a guide from the Minister’s Office.”

Lysyk also found that the state’s business case to remove the license plate stickers announced in February was not provided to the Treasury Department in a timely manner, giving it insufficient information to make a decision.

She also found insufficient information provided by the Treasury Department to the Treasury Department about the decision to eliminate the toll.

“We found that these business cases did not meet the board’s guidelines and requirements to support effective decision-making,” says Lysyk.

“Furthermore, the department noted that it did not provide a rationale in its business case as to why it sought approval to expedite toll removal by April 5, 2022. , two months before the state elections.”

The Bradford Bypass is currently undergoing an environmental review and is estimated to cost between $2 billion and $4 billion, while Highway 413 in the Toronto area is estimated to cost over $4 billion. increase.

In its report, the department said, “Using sound property management principles, we have put in place robust processes and systems to plan, prioritize, maintain, repair, and renew state highways. ” is the answer.

This report by the Canadian Press was first published on November 30, 2022.