NDP Calls for urgent action to Make Northern highways safer as Private Member’s Bill debated at Queen’s Park

QUEENS PARK – MPP Bourgouin’s Private Member’s Bill, The Northern Highways 11 & 17 Safety Act, 2025, was debated today at Queen’s Park – calling on the Ford government to take long-overdue action to make Northern Ontario’s highways safer for everyone.

“Highways 11 and 17 are lifelines for Northern communities,” said MPP Bourgouin. “They connect families to hospitals, get our kids to school, and keep workers and goods moving. But too often these roads are the scene of preventable tragedies – crashes that should never happen. Bill 49 is about accountability: making sure the government does its part to keep people safe through better winter maintenance, stronger enforcement, and proper training for truck drivers.”

The bill, targets three critical safety gaps that have put Northern drivers at risk for years:

• Driver testing and licensing: Ensuring all commercial truck drivers are properly tested and licensed by certified Ministry examiners.
• Truck inspection & enforcement: Requiring that inspection and weigh stations be adequately staffed to keep unsafe or overweight vehicles off the road.
• Winter road maintenance: Returning Ministry oversight of winter highway contracts.

Bourgouin was joined by Northern Ontario NDP MPPs Lise Vaugeois, John Vanthof, and France Gélinas who echoed the call for urgent action and accountability from the Ford government.

“Ensuring that commercial drivers are fully trained is key to their safety and the safety of all other road users. Returning testing and licensing to rigorous control by the MTO will provide the foundation that is needed to make our highways safer, and fully staffing our inspections stations will guarantee that unsafe vehicles are removed from our highways.” said MPP Vaugeois.

“This is a common sense, non-partisan issue. For too long, Northern Ontarians have had to live with risk that would never be tolerated elsewhere. We need to take action before more lives are lost on roads that are essential to our communities, the First Nations and our industries. Lack of action on this makes us the weak link in the highway system.” Said MPP Vanthof.

Together, the Northern MPPs — alongside municipal leaders and local advocates — are sending a clear message to the provincial government: Northern Ontario deserves safer highways.

ADDITIONAL QUOTES:

Marc Dupuis, Mayor of Mattice-Val-Côté, spoke during a press conference earlier in the day about the urgent need for action. “As a motorcoach driver and a mayor of a Northern municipality, I travel Highways 11 and 17 every day. Like my constituents, I rely on these roads for work, school, and health care. When they’re closed or unsafe, whole regions are cut off, emergency response is delayed, and lives are put at risk. MPP Bourgouin’s Bill 49 introduces practical, enforceable changes that will make our highways safer and ensure equity in our provincial infrastructure standards.”

Suzanne Kukko, Mayor of Nipigon added: “You can’t cross Canada without going through Nipigon, so our area sees a high volume of commercial and non-commercial highway traffic in all seasons. Nipigon was thrilled when we managed to attract a dentist. On his way into the practice a few years back, traveling the highway, he got into a horrible accident – he’s physically all right, but he hasn’t been back since. He won’t drive that highway. The lack of safety on our highways affects everyone. I hope all parties will come together to support Bill 49.”