Ford envisions three-level tunnel under Highway 401, feasibility study not started

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THORNHILL, ONT. — Ontario Premier Doug Ford revealed more details Wednesday about his planned tunnel under Highway 401, even as a feasibility study he’s commissioning has yet to get underway.

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Speaking at an unrelated transit announcement in Thornhill, Ont., north of Toronto, Ford said his plan is to have a 19.5-metre-wide, three-level tunnel, with one level going eastbound, one for westbound traffic and a bottom level for transit.

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“We’re building that tunnel as sure as I’m talking to you, and we’re going to continue (to) reach out to experts around the world,” he said.

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“If they can tunnel under the English Channel, if they can tunnel through mountains and every other place, we sure the heck can tunnel along the 401. We’ll do it safely, and we’ll do it properly.”

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The province issued a request for proposals for the study in the spring and has not yet selected a proponent, but the government appears to be forging ahead with plans. Ford has previously said a feasibility study will determine the length of the tunnel.

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Global News and CBC reported this week that documents obtained under freedom-of-information requests show the government was looking at the idea as far back as 2019, but shelved it in 2021.

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Global reports that an analysis of the tunnel idea several years ago mentions a risk of “roadway collapse.”

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Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said Ford should release the documents from 2021 and abandon his idea for a tunnel.

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“Instead of wasting time and money on impractical and dangerous vanity projects, this government should take meaningful action to address gridlock in the GTA by building affordable transit and connected communities so that people don’t have to spend hours stuck in gridlock,” he wrote in a statement.

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Liberal transportation critic Andrea Hazell called for the same, saying the public needs to see what was studied and any conclusions public servants made in 2021.

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“When he gave a descriptive design (during the press conference), 19.5 metres wide, one level going east, one going west, and a train in the lowest level, I’m thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, this is the design phase,”‘ she said.

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“So it doesn’t matter what the consultants are telling him, it doesn’t matter about this feasibility study…We need transparency. We need accountability. We need to know what was in that feasibility study.”

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Despite Ford’s strong words about moving forward with a tunnel, his government’s request for proposals earlier this year for a new feasibility study does contemplate the possibility of a tunnel or elevated highway not being possible.

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It also says the study should look at how other jurisdictions have mitigated congestion, including an evaluation of high-occupancy vehicle lanes, bus-only lanes and truck-only lanes.

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The premier has said he wants to consider a tunnel from Brampton and Mississauga in the west to Scarborough and Markham in the east. The request for proposals says the study should also consider shorter tunnel lengths, and stop/start locations considering Highway 410 and 427, and Highway 404.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2025.

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