Ouellette "unimpressed" with Hwy 11 developments

Nicky Ouellette says she's "unimpressed" with the latest developments regarding the four-laning of Hwy 11, and will let North Bay council know her feelings when she addresses them Monday night.

Ouellette, whose husband Gerry and her four step-children were killed Nov. 30 in an accident on Hwy 11 near South River, had made a heartfelt presentation to North Bay city council in March wanting to know when the four-laning was going to be completed.

"We want to see it in writing," Ouellette said, referring to when the four-laning might be finished.

Target date
She was told that, according to the Transportation Ministry, 2008 was the target date for completion of the work.

But during a meeting the Northeastern Ontario Mayor’s Action Group. earlier this month, a Ministry of Transportation bureaucrat told the group that land acquisition and engineering for the remaining 41 kilometres of the highway—one 10-km stretch will be opened this fall and one 10-km stretch next fall—would take two to four years, and then construction another two to three years after that, bringing the completion date, at the outside, to 2011.

Appears to have stuck
An article in the Feb. 21 edition of The Nugget states that Smith “gave assurances Friday the four-laning of Highway 11 will continue as scheduled with completion set for 2008.”

Later in the article Smith states she spoke with Ontario Transportation Minister Harinder Takhar's assistants “and was assured the Liberals will keep the four-laning timetable set by the previous Tory government.”

Although neither Smith nor any other Liberal politician is quoted as saying the highway work would be completed by 2008, the date appears to have stuck in the minds of local politicians and business leaders.

“I actually didn’t say ‘08 in that interview, I said that we were continuing to work on schedule, and I think it was an assumption made by, perhaps, the reporter, I’m not sure,” Smith said.

Important thing
Even if that was the case, though, Ouellette said, Smith would have had plenty of opportunity to correct any misconceptions.

"If 2008 wasn't going to be the final date and the newspaper hadn't quoted her properly then why didn't Smith go to them and clarify what the actual date would be," Ouellette said.

"The important thing is to get that highway completed rather than worrying about whether or not someone was quoted properly."

Smith could not be reached for comment at posting time.

Something has changed
Ouellette said "everyone" had been talking about 2008 as the completion date for the highway work, adding the city had even included the information in its economic development brochures.

"Obviously something has changed and I want to know what has happened," Ouellette said.

"To say I'm disappointed sounds menial compared to how I feel about the broken promises about this highway. I'm tired of broken promises and, again, I want to see it in writing."

Whatever I can
Ouellette said she has volunteered her time to work with the North Bay and District Chamber of Commerce on the four-laning issue.

"I'll do whatever I can," Ouellette said, "to make sure they finish four-laning that highway as soon as possible."