Regional roads should be Mississauga’s responsibility sooner, not later: mayor

Mississauga is pushing the provincial government to reconsider a recent — and unexpected — decision to delay the transfer of responsibility for regional roads and associated stormwater infrastructure from Peel Region to the city by a full year.

The Ontario government’s Peel Transition Implementation Act (Bill 45, 2025) stipulates Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon will each assume responsibility for several key services previously delivered by the region.

The transfer of regional roads and associated stormwater infrastructure from Peel to the three municipalities was initially to take effect July 1, 2026. However, in a move City of Mississauga officials say caught them by surprise, the province revealed on Dec. 19 it was pushing back the implementation date by one year, to July 2027.

“Disappointed” in province’s move to delay

In a letter to Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack dated Dec. 22, Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish said she was “disappointed” in the province’s decision to delay. She added the city is “fully confident” it will deliver “more efficient operations and maintenance — key considerations in this legislation.”

The mayor said the city was kept in the dark regarding the amended deadline, expected to be a topic of discussion among councillors and senior city staff at Wednesday’s general committee meeting at city hall.

“Neither our council nor staff were consulted on this proposed and significant change,” Parrish wrote in the letter, adding “we request this recent decision be reconsidered.”

Mississauga, the mayor noted, is “particularly pleased with the transfer of waste collection services and regional roads to the local municipalities in Peel Region” and she says it’s beneficial to residents to keep the July 2026 transfer date intact for roads and associated stormwater infrastructure.

Bring on new deal in 2026, not 2027, city says

Parrish said the province has made it clear since 2023 that regional roads would be among the key services transferred in Peel — and Mississauga is ready to enter that new deal sooner rather than later.

“We have consequently been working with our partners Brampton, Caledon and the staff at Peel Region to ensure the transition can take place seamlessly on July 1, 2026,” the mayor’s letter continued. “We are fully confident we will deliver more efficient operations and maintenance — key considerations in this legislation.”

Concluding her letter to the minister, Parrish stressed it’s “Mississauga’s strong desire that the orderly downloading of regional roads remains on schedule, July 1, 2026, as promised. Mississauga remains committed to cooperating with our provincial government to streamline municipal services, control property taxes for residents and local businesses, and to continue building more homes in our city.”

Regional roads in Mississauga to be transferred to the city include Airport Road, Derry Road, Britannia Road, Dixie Road, Cawthra Road, Finch Avenue, Mavis Road, Winston Churchill Boulevard, The Queensway and Erin Mills Parkway.

“Clarity” and savings for taxpayers

“With the transition of regional roads, the city will now maintain all roads within its boundaries. This change will create clarity for residents and streamline the maintenance of these roadways, saving taxpayers money,” the city said earlier.

While Bill 45 is not the full-fledged political independence they’d been seeking for some three decades (and had briefly been granted by the Ontario government in 2023 before being pulled back), Mississauga officials have said the new Peel plan that sees them assume responsibility for several key services will help them better serve the city’s growing population.

The revamped Peel plan comes as the Ontario government seeks to streamline municipal operations and improve service delivery, and build more housing, city officials said earlier.

The new plan, while well-received by Mississauga, can be described as a consolation prize, of sorts, for Peel’s biggest sibling.

After three decades of pushing for a complete political split of Peel’s three member municipalities, Mississauga officials seemed to have gotten their wish for independence when Ontario Premier Doug Ford told them so in mid-2023.

However, in an unexpected turn of events in December 2023, Ford and the province backtracked on their promise. Had that plan stood, Peel would have split up on Jan. 1, 2025.