NDP provincial parliament members are embarking on a nine-day journey through northern Ontario to bring attention to the ongoing safety issues along the Highway 11-17 corridor. Recent fatal collisions, resulting in eight reported deaths in a 10-day span, have heightened concerns about highway safety in the region.
Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles expressed the critical nature of northern highways as essential links connecting people to healthcare, employment, and family, stressing the current unsafe conditions. Despite continuous appeals from northern Ontario MPPs for necessary improvements in highway infrastructure and increased oversight for transport truck drivers and training schools, the government has neglected these requests.
Dubbed “Our Roads, Our Safety,” the road trip includes NDP MPPs Guy Bourgouin, France Gelinas, Sol Mamakwa, John Vanthof, Lise Vaugeois, and Jamie West. Stiles announced her participation in select stops, covering cities such as North Bay, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, Kapuskasing, Thunder Bay, and Kenora.
According to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) North West Region, between 2020 and 2025, there were 10,661 reported collisions on Highway 11 and 8,960 incidents on Highway 17. Tragically, this period also witnessed 116 fatalities on Highway 11 and 123 on Highway 17.
MPP Sol Mamakwa highlighted the profound impact of the fatal collisions on families and communities during a press conference preceding the MPPs’ road trip. The Ministry of Transportation reiterated its commitment to enhancing road safety in northern Ontario, with significant investments aimed at improving Highways 11 and 17.
The region’s major connector, Highway 11-17, is crucial for transportation, and closure disrupts travel options for motorists. Stiles emphasized the urgency of addressing highway safety as a nation-building priority, particularly as development efforts in the Ring of Fire region progress.
Despite the defeat of Bill 49, proposed by MPPs Bourgouin, Vanthof, and Vaugeois, which aimed to enhance highway safety measures and increase ministry responsibility for transport truck driver certification, challenges persist in ensuring safe travel on the single-lane highways of Highway 11-17.
Community leaders advocate for the twinning of the highway and the implementation of a two-plus-one system to enhance safety measures, emphasizing the critical need for immediate action to prevent further tragedies on northern Ontario highways.