Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel for cars and transit under Highway 401 that would stretch roughly from Brampton to Scarborough.

Citing increasing gridlock and little room for highway expansion at a news conference Wednesday morning, Ford says his government will begin studying the technical feasibility of building a tunnel stretching across the GTA under the country’s busiest highway.

“This tunnel and expressway will cut gridlock, support economic growth and help get people moving faster,” Ford said.

  • Yardy Sardley@lemmy.ca
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    2 months ago

    What’s with conservative premiers elbowing their way into municipal affairs recently? Weren’t they the ones complaining about government overreach a while ago?

    Anyway, I’m picturing Doug Ford busting into the provincial treasury in a car-brain fueled rage, and trying to explain that yes, he really needs $100 billion, no it’s not for drugs cars this time, it’s for economic growth

    • mister_newbie
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      2 months ago

      Municipalities exist at the convenience of the Province. They can, and will, interfere as much as they please. Not saying this is a good thing, but it is how things are.

      • girlfreddy@lemmy.caOP
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        2 months ago

        … but it is how things are …

        … now. How things are now.

        Only after Druggie decided to mess around in TO’s municiple politics to set his own fucking agenda.

        • mister_newbie
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          2 months ago

          They always had the absolute right to do so. Norms were that they didn’t, but the right existed.

          • foggenbooty@lemmy.world
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            2 months ago

            You’re correct, but that’s not really the point of the origin question. Yes they always could, but why are they doing it now? Why this uptick in meddling?

            • mister_newbie
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              2 months ago

              Because the Cons in power are the party of F you, got mine (and will get my buddies [cough, construction industry, cough] theirs)

    • Badland9085@lemm.ee
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      2 months ago

      I mean, if he can muscle his way through municipal affairs to stop some bike lanes being built, it’ll keep car dependency high enough that there would be sufficient frustrations with congestion for his car-dependent policies to look more appealing, and to also further push people who already don’t support alternative infrastructure further into his base. And to be fair, a lot of Canadians are dependent on cars, and don’t really see an alternative to cars, and it’s likely that he sees those as the base he needs to win and thus cater to. It all looks like part of the wedge politics that he’s playing.