BRACEBRIDGE, ON – A group pushing for overpasses to be constructed in Muskoka has support from local municipalities.
Bracebridge council voted unanimously on a motion to ask the provincial government to make safety improvements on Highway 11. It joined Huntsville town council, which already voted for the same motion.
Both groups want the overpasses between the communities included in the Ministry of Transportation’s 2020 budget and its five-year infrastructure improvement plan.
According to a release from Safer Hwy 11 Muskoka, a grassroots group pushing for the bridges, there have been more than 950 accidents on Hwy. 11 between Bracebridge and Huntsville over the last decade. The group said it got the numbers from the ministry through a Freedom of Information request.
Safer Hwy 11 Muskoka added that the government did a safety study on the highway 10 years ago and found that replacing the current at-grade intersections with overpasses would improve road safety.
According to the group, plans were approved to start construction but never happened.
Safer Highway 11 Muskoka launched a petition that reportedly has the support of hundreds of residents and multiple cottage associations to get the provincial government to start constructing the bridges.