A long talked about major project linking Highway 401 with the east end of Belleville is still in the works but Mayor Neil Elllis says a new interchange and the widening of the 401 will not happen “for many years.”
Ellis says the the BEAR, or Belleville East Arterial Road, project is still in the very preliminary stages.
And the Mayor tells Quinte News that to his surprise the province says the city will be responsible for building the interchange, the on-off ramps from the highway.
“Moneywise it’s going to be north 40 to 50 million dollars to build a new exchange so that’s another hurdle that we’re going to have to cross with the government to see if we can get funding.”
Although meant to be a link between the highway and an expanded industrial park in the east end, Ellis says it won’t stop close to 700 acres of new industrial land from development starting in 2027.
“We do have exit and entrance ramps on the 401 now that we will have to continue to use. It will obviously cause more traffic and congestion.”
The mayor and some council members are now at the Rural Ontario Municipal Conference in Toronto.
Tuesday, the Belleville delegation will meet with the Parliamentary Secretary for the Minister of Health to ask for help with doctor recruitment and lobby for less regulation on foreign-trained physicians so they can practise in the province more quickly.
