FAQs

Completing the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed Oak Park Road Extension has been identified as key recommendation of the City’s current and previous Transportation Master Plan (TMP) that identifies the infrastructure necessary to meet the demands of the city’s forecasted growth. Essentially, the proposed extension from Hardy Road between the Kramer’s Way / Hardy Road intersection and Colborne Street West would provide a third Grand River crossing for residents, businesses and visitors. The additional river crossing would be located in an area upstream of the two existing crossings near the city’s core, ultimately providing an alternative crossing in the event of an emergency requiring closure of the existing crossings.

The City of Brantford is sensitive to families who have an association with the Oakhill Cemetery, which is owned and operated by the City. Ensuring the safe operation and continued access to Oak Hill Cemetery is a key priority and major consideration in the Oak Park Road Environmental Assessment currently underway and in the initial Feasibility Study that was completed in 2019. Additionally, the plan for this transportation corridor has been part of the City’s overall Transportation Master Plan and Official Plan for decades and the City has always been very transparent about that. In fact, it was necessary to consider the eventual plan to develop this corridor as part of the Oak Hill Cemetery’s Master Plan in 1990 prior to its opening in 1993. Since the corridor is recognized in the Cemetery Plan, there are no existing grave sites nor future plots that would be impacted with any alignment in the vicinity of the Cemetery. The road design will also take into consideration the need for continued easy access to the site and for safe connectivity between the components of the Cemetery that will be located on both sides of the transportation corridor.

Currently, traffic flow in Brantford is heavily dependent on downtown streets including Brant Avenue, Clarence Street/Clarence Street South, Paris Road, Colborne Street and Dalhousie Street as ways to get across the city and to access Highway 403. These primary arteries of the city will become even more congested as the city grows. The Oak Park Road Extension will provide an alternative to cutting through Brantford’s downtown to get to retail and employment areas as well as access to the 403.

The Oak Park Road Extension is expected to redirect approximately 3,600 vehicles per day from Rest Acres Road and Brant Avenue/Lorne Bridge by 2041, helping reduce traffic capacity burdens on those roads.

The introduction of several thousand vehicles annually is expected to increase noise levels and the noise levels at the adjacent receptors will be quantified as part of the current Environmental Assessment underway.  In addition, the study will also review and recommend measures to mitigate the identified noise impacts on adjacent properties and community facilities.  These measures may include, but not necessarily be limited to, tree plantings, berms, naturalized landscaping and noise walls.

Air pollution is typically a regional concern and difficult to isolate on specific transportation corridors. However, air pollution due to emission will be decreased because of reduced travel time and distance.  Traffic analysis has determined that an Oak Park Road extension would both reduce travel times to/from southwest Brantford and Highway 403 by 21 to 23% in addition to reducing travel distance by 4 to 6%. Tree plantings, naturalized landscaping and other measures along the roadway will also help filter air pollution along the Oak Park Road extension.

Recognizing the importance of trails in our community, the objective of this project is to not only to maintain but to enhance the local trail network and their connection to local natural environments. The new roadway will have a multi-use trail on one or both sides to provide added routes for active transportation. Where existing trails are displaced by the proposed roadway, the construction of new alternative trails will be proposed to ensure that use and enjoyment of the area trail system is maintained.

While there will be some impact to the local natural environment and habitats as part of the construction of the Oak Park Road Extension, the protection, preservation and, wherever possible, the enhancement of existing wildlife habitats within the study area is a key priority. Before construction can begin, the City will require permits from the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP), Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) and Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), all of whom will require that the final designs be in complete compliance with the latest federal and provincial regulations protecting to the furthest extent possible and practical any identified Species-at-Risk (SAR) and their habitats.

As part of the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment currently underway, the consultant team is completing detailed inventories of the area’s terrestrial and aquatic habitats and working closely with the MNRF to identify any Species-at-Risk (SAR) or other significant environmental features such as wetland areas that might be directly or indirectly impacted by the project.

Roadway alignments and designs will be selected with the objective of minimizing the footprint of the new roadway or bridge and providing a full range of measures to mitigate identified environmental impacts. Features such as wildlife crossings and the creation of new and expanded habitats at alternative locations within the corridor will be considered.

The City’s Transportation Master Plan outlines the various alternative solutions to address the capacity constraints on the critical arterial roads as the City grows to 2041. 

They include:

• Reducing the travel demands through Transportation Demand Measures (TDMs) and traffic system measures (TSMs) such as signal timings, parking restrictions, turn restrictions
• Modify modal share to reduce use of vehicle travel through enhancements to Active transportation and Transit services in these growth areas
• However even with these improvements the capacity problems exist that will require
• Widenings of these roadways (Brant Avenue, Lorne Bridge, Paris Avenue, Hardy Road) which would result in significant property acquisitions and impacts on the adjacent land uses through the built-up areas to increase their carrying capacity OR
• Building the alternative north south connection from Colborne Street to Hardy Road (the Oak Park Road Extension) to divert traffic from the congested corridors and providing the necessary capacity to accommodate the forecasted growth in travel demands

The Transportation Master plan concluded that based on a number of factors, the best solution is the additional north-south capacity located in the transportation corridor identified in previous Transportation Master Plans since the 1981 Brantford Corridor Study, and protected as a future transportation corridor in the City’s Official Plan.

The feasibility study identified potential alternatives, methods, and alignments for this transportation corridor and the EA will further examine alternative methods of adding transportation capacity with various alignments of the roadway and river crossings that will minimize the impacts on the environment (natural, social, economic etc.).

Findings from the Environmental Assessment are expected to be presented to City Council in the fourth quarter of 2021, followed by a 30-day public review period.