Building the Morriston bypass will benefit the economy
NEWS RELEASE
Ted Arnott, MPP
Wellington-Halton Hills
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 8, 2013
Building the Morriston bypass will benefit the economy,
says MPP Arnott
(Queen’s Park) – The Highway 6 Morriston bypass is an important project that will not only
benefit the Township of Puslinch, but will have positive economic implications for much of
Southern Ontario, says Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott.
On November 7, Mr. Arnott rose in the Ontario Legislature to once again urge the
Government to proceed with the Morriston bypass.
“In a few minutes, the Minister of Finance will rise in this House to deliver his fall economic
update, the 2013 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review. While I’ve not seen the
document, I expect that he will argue that the Government is taking action to encourage job
creation, invest in vital infrastructure, and strengthen Ontario’s economy,” said Mr. Arnott.
“If he sincerely wants to pursue these goals, he needs to look no further than the very first
Private Members’ Resolution on the Legislature’s Order Paper, urging that the Highway 6
Morriston Bypass project be added to the Ministry of Transportation’s Southern Highways
Program.”
Mr. Arnott pointed out that the Government has been studying the need for the Morriston
bypass for the past 30 years and noted that an environmental assessment has been
completed. In addition, he said that the Township of Puslinch is currently undertaking an
economic study to show how the traffic bottleneck is impacting the local and provincial
economy.
“We know the Government plans to spend $2.2 billion dollars on new highway construction
this year. All I, and my constituents want to know is, when will they building the Morriston
bypass?” Mr. Arnott asked.
In his statement, Mr. Arnott also thanked the Minister of Community Safety for the recent
approval of a Community Safety Zone in Morriston.
“The Mayor and Council of the Township of Puslinch, the County of Wellington, the COPS
committee and other interested residents and organizations are all, rightly, demanding
action,” Mr. Arnott said afterwards. “They all deserve enormous credit for speaking up so
powerfully for their community.”
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Mr. Arnott has also been a strong advocate for the Morriston bypass for many years. He
has highlighted the issue in the Legislature many times. He has written and spoken to
successive Ministers of Transportation, tabled petitions in the Legislature, and has twice
introduced a Resolution calling on the Government to move forward with the project.
(Attached: Hansard record of Mr. Arnott’s statement in the Ontario Legislature, November 7,
2013)
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Ted Arnott, MPP
Phone: 416-325-3880
Email: ted.arnott@pc.ola.org
Ontario Hansard – 07-November 2013
Mr. Ted Arnott: In a few minutes, the Minister of Finance will rise in this House to deliver his fall
economic update, the 2013 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review. While I’ve not seen the
document, I expect that he will argue that the government is taking action to encourage job creation,
invest in vital infrastructure and strengthen Ontario’s economy. If he sincerely wants to pursue these three
goals, he needs to look no further than the very first private member’s resolution on the Legislature’s order
paper, urging that the Highway 6 Morriston bypass project be added to the Ministry of Transportation’s
southern highways program.
The House has heard me raise this issue many times. On Highway 6 south of Guelph and just south of the
401, through the community of Morriston, there is a traffic bottleneck that often literally stretches for
kilometres.
I want to thank the Minister of Community Safety for recently approving a community safety zone in
Morriston. This initial step, coupled with the other traffic calming measures we hope to take, should help
in the short term.
We know the government has been studying the need for the Morriston bypass for something like 30
years. The environmental assessment has been completed. The township of Puslinch is doing an economic
study to show how the bottleneck is hurting our local economy as well as the province’s economy, and we
know that the government plans to spend $2.2 billion on new highway construction this year. All I and
my constituents want to know is, when will they build the Morriston bypass? The Minister of Finance
could and should answer that question this afternoon in the fall economic statement. I call upon him to do
so.