Ford’s broken promise on Highway 69 means tragic consequences for northern families

QUEEN’S PARK – Doug Ford’s broken promise to complete the four-laning of the final 68 kilometres of Highway 69 has led to tragic consequences for northern families, said Jamie West, NDP MPP for Sudbury, who called on Ford to finally tender the project during question period Wednesday.

Mélanie Fox and Allicia Dupuis’s parents were killed on the unfinished stretch of Highway 69. West read the following letter to the premier at their request

“On Feb. 2, our beautiful parents, Suzanne Pharand and Aimé Giroux, were tragically killed on Highway 69. The accident occurred on that small stretch of the undivided and unfinished highway expansion.

“It wasn’t just our families that were affected. The poor transport truck driver, although having walked away without any physical injuries, has probably also been forever changed.

“This could have been avoided if our government had finished the job of properly dividing the last stretch of Highway 69. Then, there may have been a ditch or a barrier to stop the collision between our parent’s vehicle and the transport truck.

“Highway 69 is one of the gateways between the North and South of this province. Why not ensure that all occupants, whether personal or commercial, can travel safely?”

West said that soon after losing Aimé and Suzanne in February, another terrible accident occurred on Highway 69. The occupant of a southbound vehicle was fatally injured, and the three occupants of the northbound vehicle were transported to hospital.

“Mélanie and Allicia were devastated to hear this news,” said West who shared their response to this tragedy with the premier and the legislature:

“These fatalities would have been avoided if the highway had been finished and divided. Please don’t let the pain and sorrow happen to any other families. Don’t let any other drivers walk away with the horror of having taken a life.

“Just before Christmas, our parents had seen the birth of their seventh grandchild. They still had so many plans and dreams to accomplish. We still reach for the phone to call home but now there’s nobody there. Please don’t let any other calls go unanswered. Finish the highway. Protect those you swore to protect when you agreed to be members of this government. Protect us, the Ontarians.”

West said Northerners should not be paying for the Ford government’s broken promises with their lives.

“Will this premier offer an apology to these families and all families who have lost their loved ones on this unfinished stretch of Highway 69, and commit to tendering the project so that we can finally complete it?”