Ontario Construction News staff writer
The Ontario government has announced a package of funding for 21 municipalities to use for road and bridge repairs.
The funding is being delivered through the Connecting Links program. The program provides funding for up to 90 percent of eligible project costs. This includes a maximum of $3 million for road projects and $5 million for bridge projects. Eligible costs include the design, construction, renewal, rehabilitation and replacement of municipal roads and bridges that run through communities and connect to provincial highways.
Under this year’s allocation, five municipalities will receive the maximum funding of $3 million: Renfrew, Stratford, Grey Highlands, South Huron and Sault Ste. Marie.
“We are investing in municipal roads and bridges to help municipalities make needed infrastructure improvements that will keep our communities moving safely and efficiently everyday,” Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney said in a statement. “This funding is part of our government’s plan to create a strong Ontario, connecting more people to jobs, housing and economic opportunities across the province.”
The funding is part of Ontario’s investment of more than $27 billion in highway, road and bridge projects over the next 10 years.
Connecting links are municipal roads that connect two ends of a provincial highway through a community or to an international or interprovincial border crossing. Across the province, there are 352 kilometres of connecting links, with 70 bridges in 77 municipalities.
Applications for funding under the 2024–25 Connecting Links program open later this year.