WHITBY FREF. PRESS, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1987, PAGE 19 Regional council agrees on preferred route for future 407 Durham Region has agreed on a preferred corridor for the proposed new Highway 407 as it passes through the region and wants the Ministry of Transport and Com- munications (MTC) to proceed immediately with a route selection planning study and designate freeway-to-freeway connections between the new highway and the 401. The route agreed upon by regional council members would see the highway enter the region in Pickering, north of Whitevale and south of Brougham. It would then run eastward in almost a straight line, cutting south of Greenwood and nipping the southern end of Brooklin, just south of Highway 7 (Winchester Road) and proceed to Highway 35-115 in Newcastle. Highway 407 was originally proposed in the 1950s to provide a multi-lane divided highway parallel to and north of the 401 across the northern limits of the Metro Toronto urban area. Later, as a key part of the Parkway Belt in the 1970 'Design for Development - The Toronto-Centred Region Con- cept,' the 407 was shown at High- way 401 north of Streetsville, and running across southern York Region and through Durham parallel to the 401 to the junction of the 35-115. But in the early 70s, MTC began a route planning study for the section of the 407 from the east metro tran- sportation corridor through Durham Region. This study was cancelled when the federal gover- nment ceased work on the proposed international airport in Pickering. As a result, a precise route was never designated through the Durham area. According to Region planning commissioner Mofeed Michael, the construction of highway 407 bestows major benefits on Durham. He said it would divert traffic from congested areas on the 401, resulting in better traffic services. He said it is necessary for the development of second-tier com- munities such as Brooklin in Whit- by and Seaton. He said highway 407 is becoming a higher priority in Durham with the starting of the 407 in York Region and the imminent development of the Seaton urban area. However, he said that based on conversations with MTC staff, it could be 30 years before construc- tion of the 407 through Durham might start. At the present time, the ministry plans to start con- struction of the new highway from the 427 to highway 400 this year. Given a rough time frame of eight years to complete each section of highway, it would be the year 2017 before sections were completed to the east metro transportation corridor and ready to wind its way into Durham. "The considerable uncertainty surrounding the designated location for highway 407 is often confusing to the public and seriously limits the consideration ay the Region of longer range plan- ning and development oppor- tunities," said Dr. Michael. "Ac- cordingly, it is highly desirable that the MTC route location study proceed as quickly as possible." He said MTC is in the process of re-initiating the route planning study in Durham and that the study is expected to start in about six months time. He felt this process, which would eventually lead to a designated alignment for the new highway, is likely to take several years since it will require the sub- mission of a full environmental assessment document and entail a combined planning and environ- iental hearing process. SEE PAGE 30 L207oOFF