It took police about three minutes to catch the first speeder trekking along the latest stretch of Northwestern Ontario divided highway.
The $62-million, 14-kilometre portion of Highway 11/17, between MacKenzie Station and Birch Beach roads, opened to traffic on Friday morning.
OPP said the highway, which still carries a 90-kilometre-an-hour speed limit, should cut down on the severity of collisions that have plagued the busy two-way traffic route for decades.
Between 5,000 and 10,000 vehicles travel the road between Thunder Bay and Nipigon each day.
Ron Van Straalen,the OPP’s regional commander of the Northwest Region, said it’s huge for safety and traffic movement.
“We’re always dealing with unfortunate accidents. With the two-lane highway, especially in Northwestern Ontario, to get people re-routed. You get a lot of people waiting and frustrated, and dangerous situations,” Van Straalen said.
“So when you’re talking about a stretch of highway like this, it’s a real boon to us to be able to facilitate the flow of traffic and make sure people get to where they have to get in a safe manner.”
Minister of Northern Development and Mines Michael Gravelle was one of several dignitaries on hand for the highway-opening ceremony and called it a big day for drivers in the North.
But it’s just the beginning he added, reiterating his commitment to see all 104 kilometres of highway between Nipigon and Thunder Bay twinned.
“This stretch is really spectacular to look at, (but) again, we’re going to be seeing other stretches opening up relatively soon and the contracts being let for others as well as we move forward,” Gravelle said.
“It’s an exciting day for me, obviously a dream project. When I first got elected in 1995 I began talking about how I felt we deserved to have a four-lane highway between Thunder Bay and Nipigon, and indeed that day is coming true.”
Expansion of the Nipigon River bridge is already underway, as is the four-laning of another 13-kilometre section of Highway 11/17 east of Highway 527.
Gravelle’s colleague, MPP Bill Mauro (Lib., Thunder Bay-Atikokan), said it’s a clear testament of the province’s commitment to the region.
“Going back to 2003, when I was first elected, highways, and especially northern highways, was one of the primary issues that as a northern caucus we lobbied the most for,” Mauro said.
It’s good for business too, said the head of the Northwestern Ontario Association of Chambers of Commerce.
“Highway 11/17 is an essential transportation link from east to west and move a lot of goods for our businesses and our clients. NOACC, for more than 20 years, has really been advocating for the expansion of this roadway, to look at improving safety and to reduce the amount of road closures to allow those goods to move for businesses and consumers,” Michael Nitz said.
Bot Construction was awarded the contract in 2010.
