Continued progress on 407 positive for Peterborough
Last Friday morning on a blustery but sunny December day, I hopped on the 115 and headed south for the formal announcement on the opening of the next phase of the 407 highway. Starting in January 2018 another 9.6 kilometres of highway will be available to motorists and will include tolling. The 407 East journey is one that is very close to the hearts of us and our members at the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce. For it was at an Ontario Chamber of Commerce AGM in Thunder Bay in 2003 that then Board Chair Dan Stanford asked that a policy resolution calling for the 407 to be built to Oshawa be amended to have the 35/115 as the end of the 407. That advocacy was critical. Thank you to MPP Jeff Leal for recognizing the Chamber advocacy for this project. In fact, we have seen it come to fruition already with the current construction of the overpass and interchange on the 35/115 today. By the way, that was another Peterborough idea – this time presented to the province by Mayor Bennett. I first wrote an article on the 407 in July 2013; rereading that article today, it’s amazing to see how much progress has been made. At the time there was great concern and doubt that the road would be completed by 2020. After all, the original completion date was 2013. Yet in the past two years I’ve attended two opening ceremonies and look forward to the final one in a few years. True, the highway is simply asphalt or concrete painted with yellow and white lines, exits branching off like the limbs of a tree, but for the business community of Peterborough the eastward extension of Highway 407 is so much more. Once completed by 2020, it will be a more direct link to the economy of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA); a new yellow brick road, so to speak. The economic opportunity a completed 407 represents should not be underestimated. Commerce flows both ways – from the GTA in the form of tourists and companies wanting to do business or relocate, and into the GTA from the Peterborough region allowing our companies easier access to the vast market known as the Greater Golden Horseshoe. The shiny newness of the highway has not worn off. The Ministry of Transportation is already reporting that approximately 40,000 vehicles a day are using the most recent extension and 412 connector highway. The 407 is a piece of the economic puzzle for Central East Ontario. For example, CavanMonaghan is anticipating the change with the approval of new subdivisions and a new $15 million community centre scheduled to open in the fall of 2019. Peterborough industrial businesses and the newly named Cleantech Commons at Trent University will benefit from the access to the 407 highway for many years to come. And with other transportation nodes available to Peterborough, such as the airport and potential for improved train service, Peterborough is a regional hub and the 407 will only further solidify that standing. Learn more about the 407 project at on407.ca