Mayor Kelly Linton is cautiously optimistic about whether a new provincial Connecting Links program will benefit Centre Wellington.
“I think all of council would have gotten the email about the new Connecting Links program,” Linton told fellow councillors on April 20.
“We’ll have to see what that means for the St. David Street bridge (in Fergus).”
The provincial program, which provided funding to municipalities for infrastructure repair/replacement of roads and bridges that connect communities to provincial highways and border crossings, was cancelled by the Liberal government in 2013.
The St. David Street bridge is part of the Highway 6 connecting link in Fergus. It will require either substantial rehabilitation or replacement – expected to cost millions – within the next several years.
When the province dropped the original Connecting Link program, municipalities were left scrambling to figure out how to come up with funds to keep local highway connections in good repair.
Linton said this week’s announcement is “good News from the province.” He also said it indicates municipalities across the province have spoken “and that is good News … we’ll see what it means for us.”
A News release from the Ontario Ministry of Transportation called the move “Part of the largest infrastructure investment in Ontario’s history.”
Starting next spring, the province is committing $15 million annually to a new Connecting Links program.
The ministry press release also notes there are about 350 kilometres of roads and 70 bridges along connecting links in 77 municipalities across Ontario, and the province “will consult with key municipalities to ensure the new program meets their unique needs.”
The ministry states the program will be designed to complement the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund, which helps small, rural and northern communities build and repair critical infrastructure.
In response to the announcement, Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott said “the cancellation of the original Connecting Link program created huge problems for municipalities like the Town of Halton Hills and the Township of Centre Wellington.”
Before the Liberals cancelled it, the Connecting Link program had provided municipalities with a stable source of funding for up to 90% of the cost of necessary road and bridge repairs on provincial highways passing through built up areas.
The government’s “abrupt” decision to cancel Connecting Link in 2013 had a huge impact on both the Town of Halton Hills and the Township of Centre Wellington, said Arnott.
Centre Wellington plans to repair the St. David Street Bridge in Fergus at an estimated cost of $2.6 million, as well as carry out an additional $1.2 million of work on St. David Street.
Similarly, the Town of Halton Hills had been planning $9.3-million of work on Connecting Link roadways over a five-year period. Both municipalities had been expecting the province to cover up to 90% of these costs.
Arnott also pointed out the $15-million commitment is considerably less than what the Government spent in some previous years under the old program.
“For example, the government allocated $25.3 million in 2007-08 and $24.3 million in 2009-10” he noted. “We hope this $15 million is only a start.”
