Ministry of Transport (MOT) has announced that it is suspending the environmental assessment (EA) for Hwy 413 (GTA West Corridor.)  In the announcement MOT states that it is not a decision to cancel the new highway but that it is being reviewed.  Everyone is reading the tea leaves, including me; and given my lack of enthusiasm for the project I am of course seeing the “suspension” as an indicator that the arguments against the wisdom of this new highway have finally registered.  Having said that I recognize that a lengthy suspension of the EA and/or an outright cancellation does create a host of new issues in YR.  Knowing where the future Hwy is going to intersect with Hwy 400 has been identified as an important data point for York Region as it assesses alternative options for a east/west corridor.  And decisions about that could provide the answer to the long sought need of a King Road by-pass.

Here is link to the full announcement; below is the critical paragraph.  If I were to re-write the paragraph below I would use words/phrases indicating that the proposed new highway was old technology which would drive up green house gas emissions without solving the problem.

“Having the right transportation network in place that builds on our climate change commitments, our ability to embrace new and emerging technologies and the sharing economy, will help us plan for a flexible transportation system that adapts to our quickly changing landscape and positions our province for success for generations to come.”