STEEP PRICE FOR AEROTROPOLIS ROADS

It will cost over $100 million for road work to service the proposed airport employment growth district (AEGD), also known as the aerotropolis. The price tag doesn’t include modifications to existing expressways, or construction of new high–speed roads such as a suggested rural express route between the airport and the south end of the Red Hill Valley Parkway or the long–discussed mid–peninsula highway.
A list of planned local road projects (posted on the CATCH website) has been made available as part of the consultant study to calculate a new development charges bylaw. It identifies and provides cost estimates for over 150 arterial road projects expected to undergo construction before 2031, including 11 specifically labelled AEGD.
The cost of the AEGD identified projects is $104.7 million. The largest – $29.2 million – is for modifications to Upper James between Rymal Road and the new highway 6 bypass. Another $18.9 million is earmarked for Fiddler’s Green between Garner and Carluke, while $10.1 million would be spent on Airport Road between Upper James and Glancaster (see map of the aerotropolis study area on the CATCH website).