Ontario Premier Doug Ford says construction on the long-proposed Highway 413 is about to begin.

Ford made the announcement about the highway that would link Halton, Peel and York Regions in Caledon, Ont., Wednesday morning, saying the first two construction contracts for the project have now been awarded.

The new highway will reduce travel times between the regions by 30 minutes per trip, and construction will support more than 6,000 jobs and contribute more than $1 billion to Ontario’s annual gross domestic product, Ford said.

“It will deliver on our plan to build a stronger, more prosperous Ontario for decades to come,” Ford told reporters, saying the economic benefits of construction and reduced gridlock would help the province combat the impacts of U.S. tariffs.

Ford and Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria refused to say when the proposed 52-kilometre highway will be completed and how much it will cost taxpayers.

Crews in Caledon have begun to resurface Highway 10, where Ford held his announcement, to prepare a new bridge there that’s planned to pass over the new highway, according to a provincial news release. Under the new contracts, crews will soon begin upgrades at the Highway 401/407 interchange, the future site of Highway 413’s western terminus.

Critics denounce plan

Ontario’s opposition parties have criticized the Ford government’s highway plans, saying it’s more about making land along the highway more valuable for developers than it is about reducing gridlock.

“Once again the premier is using tariff talk to justify wasting billions of taxpayer dollars on a highway that won’t solve gridlock, while failing to provide any clear timeline or budget for this reckless and costly plan,” said Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner.

“This ill-advised project will only fuel more sprawl and pollution, while destroying the wetlands that protect us from flooding and the farmland that feeds us,” he said.

WATCH | Highway 413 construction set for 2025, despite environmental concerns: 

Construction could start as early as next year on Highway 413

Ontario hopes to begin building Highway 413 within a year. The announcement comes after the federal government reached an agreement with the province — backing away from a court fight over the potential environmental impacts of the project. Queen’s Park reporter Lorenda Reddekopp has more.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said instead of looking at solutions that bring “immediate relief” — such as removing tolls for trucks on Highway 407 — Ford “is focused on a project that has no timeline, no price tag, and no plans to get people out of traffic.”

“Ontarians are stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic and need solutions that get them home to their loved ones now, not decades from now,” she said.

Ford said Wednesday he would not be removing tolls for trucks on Highway 407.

Pushing for details

The lack of transparency on large infrastructure projects such as Highway 413 is unacceptable, said Andrea Hazell, the Liberal critic for transportation.

“Without clear cost estimates, timelines, or proof the contracts were awarded fairly, the public cannot assess the value of this project,” she said.

“Transparency matters, and Ontarians deserve to know the full implications of Highway 413 before billions more are sunk into another Ford project that risks leaving commuters in the same gridlock and taxpayers footing an even bigger bill.”

WATCH | What Bill 212 means for Ontario projects: 

Ford government passes controversial Bill 212. Here’s what it entails

The Ontario government has passed Bill 212, a controversial piece of legislation that allows the removal of bike lanes on three major cycling routes in Toronto. The bill also lets Highway 413 construction begin before Indigenous consultation. CBC’s Lane Harrison has the details.

Environmentalists have also criticized the project as it will carve through prime farmland and endanger wildlife. 

Last year, a group of over 100 scientists submitted a joint letter to then-federal environment minister Steven Guilbeault, saying the highway could negatively impact as many as 29 species of animals that are considered “at risk” by the federal government, as well as 122 species of migratory birds and fish habitats in over 100 waterways.

A handful of protesters were at Ford’s announcement Wednesday. It comes less than a year after the passing of Bill 212, which allows for construction of Highway 413 to begin before consultation with Indigenous groups or an environmental assessment is complete.

Construction possible 24 hours a day

The province passed legislation last year that allowed for an accelerated version of an environmental assessment to be completed on the project.

It also designated the 413, along with the proposed Bradford Bypass and the Garden City Skyway bridge expansion, as priority projects to speed up their construction.

The legislation also facilitates construction 24 hours a day, streamlines utility relocations, introduces new penalties for obstructing access for field investigations or damaging equipment and accelerates access to property and property acquisitions.

Ford said last year he was confident the Highway 413 project would pass a standard environmental assessment, expressing the view that it had already been studied enough.

The new highway will run from the Highway 401/407 interchange near Mississauga, Milton and Halton Hills to Highway 400 in Vaughan, with extensions to Highways 410 and 427, according to a provincial news release.

The first construction contract has been awarded to Fermar Paving for an embankment at the Highway 401/407 interchange. The second contract, to Pave-Al, is for the resurfacing of Highway 10 in Caledon.