Ottawa “is committed to creating an additional multimodal bridge over the Ottawa River to improve transportation connectivity” in the federal capital region, the statement reads.
“This engagement allows for the next phase of planning, which includes impact assessment, design, preliminary site preparation and a procurement strategy.”
The road link will connect Highway 50 at Montée Paiement, in Gatineau, to Promenade de l’Aviation, in Ottawa.
“Historic advance”
This announcement is a “historic step forward” for Gatineau MP Steven MacKinnon. Since his election in 2015, the Liberal has made this project his hobby horse, even if the support of the mayors of Ottawa and Gatineau has sometimes been absent.
“I have been urging my government since it took office to take this responsibility very seriously,” he said in 2019, saying that “the data on ridership is alarming.”
Since his arrival in federal politics, Steven MacKinnon has defended the “sixth link” project. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
“After decades of waiting, it is with pride that I welcome the confirmation of the first interprovincial bridge in eastern Gatineau,” he wrote on Monday.
According to the federal government, the new bridge will “optimize public transit networks and eliminate truck traffic in congested city centers, which will stimulate economic growth in downtown Gatineau and Ottawa, speed up travel and will make active transport safer.
Funded, but…
Minister MacKinnon is expected to make an announcement soon to detail the project.
As reported The Law On Sunday, an envelope of $31.6 million was also granted by Ottawa to finance studies related to the Ontario portion of the tramway, which aims to relieve congestion in the west of the city.
But these announcements come at a time when the government is in troubled waters, which could undermine the promises made on Monday.
The sudden departure of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on the day she was due to present her economic statement led to repeated calls for the prime minister to resign.
Project supported by the federal government
The mayor of Gatineau, Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, was cautious in reaction to the announcement of this project which is only in its infancy. She stressed that the City will have the opportunity to take part in future public consultations, among other things to see how the project would fit into the neighborhoods, but that it is not a municipal project.
“This is a project that is really supported by the federal government, by Mr. MacKinnon in particular,” she stressed. It is certain that when there is money for Gatineau, we rejoice. Now we will see what the studies say and take part in public consultations. […] We will let them do their studies, their planning phases, then we will, as a partner, take part when it is appropriate to do so.”
The mayor also stressed that she was, among other things, concerned about the induced traffic that a sixth link could create. “We know that when we add roads, we add vehicles, so we do not solve the congestion problem. But the studies will allow us to shed light on this aspect.”
