Ontario Government To Increase Speed Limit On 400 Series Highways

Published May 2, 2019 at 2:00 pm

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The Ontario government is looking at increasing the speed limits on the 400 series highways.

Ontario Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek recently announced that the province will be reviewing speed limits on major highways.
Multiple media reports indicate the speed limit could be raised to 120 km/h–up from the 100 km/h it sits at now. 

According to a CBC article, Yurek says, “If you look back on the history of why speed limits were set where they were, back in the ’70s there was an energy crisis and in order to conserve fuel they lowered the speed limits on our highway system and it stayed that way ever since.”

This new move is due to the recommendation of many stakeholders and the public. However, they have not released when they will increase the speed limit, nor they have confirmed that it will indeed be set at 120 km/h.

The change is a part of the new legislation called Getting Ontario Moving. This legislation will introduce tougher fines for people who drive too slowly in the passing lane and speeders in construction zones. The government also proposes to allow motorcyclists to use high occupancy vehicle lanes.

Yurek took to Twitter to share more information about the legislation.

The legislation will integrate local transit systems, expand subway lines, and introduce a zero blood alcohol or drug presence requirement for driving instructors.

They will also introduce lighter trains since it will make “the train go faster and help decrease cost.”

“Our government continues to make sure that the experience of real people is front of mind in every decision we make,” stated Yurek.

The Ontario government will also launch another province-wide consultation to look at traffic rules for bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters.

More details about the consultation and pilot project will be released next week.

Photo courtesy of Infrastructure Ontario.

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