LONDON, Ont. — Ontario’s battle to wrest more funds out of the federal government yielded a victory today with a multi-billion dollar commitment from Ottawa for infrastructure.
Federal Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon says more than $3 billion in funding will help the province repair its aging roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
The Ontario government will match that amount to raise the total investment to about $6.2 billion.
Cannon says substantial infrastructure funding for Ontario was long overdue.
Deputy Premier George Smitherman says today’s announcement shows the two levels of government are working together for a stronger Ontario.
The spending is expected to create much needed jobs in the province, which has been hit hard in recent months by cutbacks in manufacturing and the auto sector.
Initial priorities include improvements to the Trans-Canada Highway in northwestern Ontario, rural broadband coverage in parts of Ontario and rapid transit in the Kitchener-Waterloo Region.
The funding arrangement will run until 2014.