Ontario Highway Service Centres

operational

Opportunity Across Ontario there are 23 service centres with direct access to Highways 400 and 401 located on lands owned by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. These service stations provide travelers with the opportunity to stop and rest, buy food and fuel, use public telephones or washrooms, and have a drink of water while parking for free. More than 500,000 vehicles, including 45,000 trucks, travel by these sites each day. The majority of these service centres were built in the 1960s with the exception of three built in the late 1990s.In addition to providing a first impression of the province to visitors, the service centres play a crucial role in maintaining road safety and economic prosperity. Twenty-eight per cent of Canada-U.S. merchandise trade travels across the Windsor-Detroit border by truck. Commercial motorists require convenient places to rest, refuel and eat. Given the service stations’ role in tourism and trade it made sense to invest in their upgrade before twenty of the long-term leases with oil companies who operate them expired between 2007 and 2011. Challenges Site contamination from the old gas stations resulted in schedule delays on approximately one quarter of service centres. Cleaning up a contaminated site took anywhere from four months to a year. Innovations By bundling a number of smaller facilities under one contract, the project generated economies of scale. The project was the first Ministry of Transportation project delivered under the Province’s Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) program. Results Service centres were designed and built to last for the next 50 years and meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification. Redevelopment of the service centres has resulted in aesthetically pleasing service stations, providing an improved first impression of the province. The service centres contribute to increased road safety and enhance the economy, both by supporting Canada-U.S. trade and generating revenue. Private sector oil companies continue to pay the government to lease and operate the sites. Approximately 350 construction workers were on all service centre sites during construction. Upon completion each service centre began employing approximately 100 o 150 people. In total up to 2,500 people are employed across the province in the service centre system.

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