Border Infrastructure Fund Disgrace

• Remember back in August, 2002 what then Industry Minister Allan Rock said
  
  "Industry Minister Allan Rock pledged Wednesday to remove the backlog of bridge-bound truck traffic from Huron Church Road and Wyandotte Street West.
  
  "Windsor residents can count on the government to take action that is going to make a difference, not only for access to the border, but in terms of quality of life in this community," Rock said."

He was given responsibility for the Border Infrastructure Fund.

In September, 2002 the Chamber of Commerce advocated for

• "the development of a controlled-access corridor from Highway 401 to the Ambassador Bridge, which is the cornerstone of the bridge company's proposal...it is clear to all of us that we must have that continuous corridor from the 401 to the bridge and across to 1-75"

Why even Councillor Francis, as he then was, stated

• "There is now no reason we can't deal with this report at Monday's council meeting," said councillor Eddie Francis. "We need to move and move quickly.
  
  "It's my understanding that the release of federal funds is predicated on the recommendations of this and other reports," Francis said. "That being the case, we can't afford to wait until minister Rock has made his decision about the allocation of funds before we make our recommendations clear."

And then remember the joyous news when

• "high-ranking officials each from the federal and provincial governments -- have been given 60 days by Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Premier Ernie Eves to determine how $300 million of border infrastructure funds should be spent to resolve the border crunch caused daily by 12,000 U.S.-bound trucks."

In case you didn't know, that program was supposed to be over by now since it had a five-year time that ended in September of this year. (However, somewhere along the line it was extended to 2013. I'm not sure where that happened. Perhaps in Budget 2007) Thousands and thousands of high-paying jobs were to have been created by the completion of the road to the Ambassador Bridge. It had nothing to do with DRIC. It was to deal with "intermediate" matters only. It was to upgrade infrastructure at the Ontario approaches to the existing border crossings.

Since "BIF contributions are directed at, or on routes leading to Canada’s border crossings," one can legitimately ask the question what has been done with that $300 million. The answer is pretty obvious... not very much with respect to a road to the bridge, even as an intermediate solution.

Thanks to a memo buried in the Communications package for Councillors, here's how that money has been spent in Windsor....or not really spent:

• Walker Road grade separation with an estimated cost of $50 million, recently started
• Howard Avenue grade separation with an estimated cost of $45 million, at the value engineering stage
• ITS system (signage) at a cost of $60 million [that has to be a typo]
• Truck ferry facilities improvement for the handling of hazardous goods at a cost of $3 million to be started in mid-2008
• Huron Church pedestrian overpass... hallelujah it was completed
• Tunnel Plaza improvements... amounts unknown although budgetted initially at $30 million with no start date set yet and the public open house is not yet finished
• Widening of Highway 401 to six lanes... technically outside of the city limits with no amounts set out for a cost
• Long left turn lane at Huron Church and Industrial Drive... another one finished!

What a complete and utter joke this is. People should be ashamed of themselves. To be direct about it, what has any of this really got to do with solving the intermediate problem of moving traffic along Huron Church to the Ambassador Bridge and across the border? How can any bureaucrat or politician claim that they have complied with what the program was intended to do?

Do you understand why Windsorites should be furious? Do you understand now why the Ambassador Bridge Company has the right to be angry at all levels of Government? What was promised was never delivered. Here are just a few examples of what has happened in other parts of the Province:

• $44 million to rebuild Highway 402 east of Sarnia to improve traffic flow and safety.
• $45-million, fifth-lane Queenston-Lewiston Bridge expansion project
• $4.3 million for work on the U.S. Plaza at the Peace Bridge
• $82.5 million to reduce congestion on the QEW through the Niagara region
• $323 million to improve highways and bridges in Niagara, Sarnia and London

As I have written before, all that Governments have left to pressure the Bridge Company is trying to eliminate or greatly reduce truck access to their crossing. Please try and tell me now that five years of stalling and inaction on the BIF border road is not part of that pressure tactic.