MTO looks to redevelop highway service centers, add rest areas
TORONTO -- The Ontario Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure Ontario released today a request for qualifications (RFQ) to shortlist teams to design, build, finance, maintain and operate highway service Centers on Highways 400 and 401. There are 23 highway service centers located in Southern Ontario, on land owned by the government. They are currently leased and operated by one of three fuel companies: Shell, Imperial Oil or Petro Canada. The majority of the long-term leases are about to expire. The province is looking for a single operator who will renew the sites and offer quality services to the traveling public. Any operator leasing the facilities will be required to incorporate road safety initiatives, which could include additional space and services to provide rest opportunities for truckers. "Ontario's highway service centers are important to travelers as they provide a safe place to rest, eat, and re-fuel," said Transportation Minister Donna Cansfield. "We want to provide the public with modern service centers that provide better and innovative services." The border crossing between Windsor and Detroit accounts for 28 per cent of Canada-U.S. merchandise trade. "The truckers hauling merchandise along this corridor are in need of convenient places to rest," the government states. The project is the first transportation project to be delivered under the Province's Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) program. Unlike other infrastructure projects where the government pays the private sector for infrastructure renewal, the selected operator of the service centers will pay for their redevelopment and provide an ongoing source of revenue to the Province.