TORONTO - “The government has failed the North again.”
That’s the message from Mushkegowuk-James Bay MPP Guy Bourgouin after his latest attempt to improve safety on Highways 11 and 17 was defeated in the Ontario legislature.
Bourgouin introduced Bill 49 — the Northern Highway 11 and 17 Safety Act, 2025 — in June.
“This bill is not about political stripes,” Bourgouin said in a statement issued on Nov. 3.
“It’s about protecting the safety of northern families and communities … Once again, they have failed the North by turning the safety of Northerners into a political issue.”
Bourgouin first introduced the bill at Queen’s Park, joined by co-sponsors Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP Lise Vaugeois, Timiskaming-Cochrane MPP John Vanthof, Sudbury MPP Jamie West, and Nipigon Mayor Suzanne Kukko. Together, they urged the Ford government to act on what they called long-standing and preventable dangers on two of the province’s most vital roadways.
SEE: Bourgouin leading drive for Highway 11 safety improvements
The proposed legislation called for:
- Weigh scales and truck inspection sites that are staffed daily for at least 12 hours
- Sufficient OPP enforcement along Highways 11 and 17
- Truck driver testing and certification to be conducted only by ministry examiners
- Winter road maintenance in Northern Ontario to return to direct management under the Ministry of Transportation rather than private contractors
This was Bourgouin’s fourth attempt to pass legislation improving northern highway safety since first being elected in 2018.
“People in Northern Ontario understand all too well the dangers of travelling on Highways 11 and 17 — they are lifelines for our northern communities,” he said in the Nov. 3 statement.
“The NDP has brought this bill forward to save lives, yet this government seems content to leave northern families and communities at risk.”