Major rehabilitation of Hwy. 401 in GTA to continue for at least 3 years

It seems like construction on Highway 401 in the GTA never ends, and for at least the next three years a major rehabilitation will continue to bog traffic down as drivers suffer through lane restrictions and closures.

Here’s a full rundown of every major project currently underway on the 401 in the Greater Toronto Area:

Highway 401 in Milton and Mississauga

Construction on the new express and collector lane system on Highway 401 near Mississauga Road on Oct. 4, 2022. CITYNEWS/Kyle Hocking

Crews are continuing to work on a massive expansion of Highway 401 between the Credit River in Mississauga and Highway 25 in Milton. A 12-lane express and collector system will extend west to Winston Churchill Boulevard, and then a wider, 10-lane section will open between Winston Churchill and Highway 407.

RELATED: Major construction on Highway 401 in west GTA nearing completion

Crews are also expected to fully open another 12-lane express and collector system between Highway 407 and James Snow Parkway with another widened, 10-lane section between James Snow and Highway 25 to be opened as well. Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation (MTO) told CityNews in August 2022 that crews are on track to completely finish the project by the end of this year.

Highway 401 in Etobicoke

The Westbound Highway 401 at Dixon Road in Etobicoke with closures of the ramps at Dixon on Oct. 5, 2022. CITYNEWS/Kyle Hocking

The MTO is working on bridge rehabilitation both ways on Highway 401 between Highway 427 and Kipling Avenue. Crews will also resurface this section of highway.

Since April 2022, both the westbound Highway 401 ramp to Dixon Road, and the westbound Dixon Road ramp to westbound 401 have been closed to traffic. Both ramps are scheduled to re-open at the end of November, but the full project will not be completed until 2025.

MTO crews are also working in the express lanes on the westbound 401 between Highway 400 and Kipling Avenue. Construction in this area is related to bridge rehabilitation and road resurfacing and is due to finish in 2023.

Highway 401 in North York

Construction on the eastbound Highway 401 express lanes at Allen Road on Oct. 4, 2022. CITYNEWS/Kyle Hocking

Another major project has the eastbound Highway 401 express lanes reduced between Keele Street and Avenue Road as crews rehabilitate all over and underpasses in this section and completely resurface the highway. Road work here is scheduled to finish in 2023.

Starting next summer, crews will also begin rehabilitation work on the westbound 401 express lanes between Avenue Road and Jane Street with construction set to extend through 2025.

Roadwork is in place in the collector lanes on Highway 401 eastbound between Avenue Road and Warden Avenue too. This project includes more bridge rehabilitation and a complete replacement of the eastbound 401 ramp to Leslie Street, which began in 2017 and opened to traffic over the summer. The eastbound 401 ramp to the southbound Don Valley Parkway is also being worked on, and the full rehab in this area is not anticipated to finish until 2025.

Highway 401 in Scarborough

The westbound Highway 401 express lanes at Kennedy Road undergoing bridge replacement and resurfacing work on Sept. 19, 2022. CITYNEWS/Kyle Hocking

Yet another major project has had lanes reduced in both the express and collectors on Highway 401 westbound in Scarborough since 2019. The 15-kilometre section between Neilson Road and Warden Avenue has been undergoing widening and resurfacing work, and a rehabilitation of 20 over and underpasses. The MTO says crews will need at least another two years to complete the work with a projected end date of 2024.

RELATED: Process of repaving GTA highways ‘complex’ and can take months

There is also roadwork on the eastbound 401 in this area too. Both express and collector lanes are being worked on between Neilson Road in Scarborough and Whites Road in Pickering. Crews along this 18-kilometre section are redoing bridges and repaving the highway.

In an email to CityNews in September, the MTO said work on the Meadowvale and Port Union bridges was complete but there are still 10 others to be finished. They are aiming for a 2023 completion date.

Highway 401 in Durham Region

The Thickson Road overpass at Highway 401 in Whitby under construction on Oct. 4, 2022. CITYNEWS/Kyle Hocking

Roadwork is underway on Highway 401 at Thickson Road in Whitby. Work here began this past summer and is focused on bridge and culvert rehabilitation. It will be relatively short-lived by comparison to other projects though. The MTO expects construction to be done in 2023.

Starting in 2023, construction crews will begin the process of replacing the bridge over Westney Road in Ajax with work on that project still currently in the bidding phase.

Crews recently completed a major overhaul of Highway 401 near Brock Street in Whitby, which included a replacement of both the Henry Street and Brock Street bridges, a widening of the highway from three lanes to four, and a redesign of the ramps at Brock Street.

A replacement of the Simcoe Street and Albert Street bridges over Highway 401 in Oshawa is also planned to facilitate future widening of the highway. Work on the new overpasses was scheduled to begin in 2021 and continue through 2025, but crews have not yet started as of October 2022.