Connecting Canada Drive and America Avenue over Highway 400

May 31, 2024 12:30 p.m.

City News

Building the city. Reducing gridlock. Keeping you moving.

The City of Vaughan is building a bridge over Highway 400 to connect Canada Drive and America Avenue. Once complete, the bridge will enhance Vaughan’s transportation network, help alleviate traffic and gridlock, allow residents to travel seamlessly from one community to another, and incentivize the accelerated development of 3,100 housing units in the surrounding areas. This project is the latest example of the City’s determination to fight traffic gridlock.

Today, an official groundbreaking ceremony took place marking the start of construction. Mayor Steven Del Duca, Francesco Sorbara, Member of Parliament for Vaughan–Woodbridge, Members of Council and other dignitaries were in attendance.

The total project construction cost for the bridge is $25 million with $9 million coming from the City, $8.5 million from York Region and $7.5 million from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund.

The bridge will include a two-lane road with sidewalks and bicycle lanes on both sides – this will improve overall traffic movement in the area, shorten travel times, offer better access to local amenities, create access to enhanced transit systems and promote sustainable transportation options with pedestrian and cycling networks. It will also help improve emergency services response times within the community.

Construction activities underway include:

installing erosion and sediment control measures.
removing trees and implementing tree protection measures.
stripping and excavating existing topsoil.
excavation and grading works.
importing, placing and compacting fill materials (such as soil and gravel) to the site.
installing foundations – pile foundations, caisson foundations, abutment and pier construction – to support the construction of the bridge.
cast-in-place concrete, which involves pouring concrete to form the walls of the bridge.

All roads will remain open to vehicular and pedestrian traffic during construction. However, temporary lane restrictions will be required to allow construction activities to proceed safely and efficiently. Disruptions will be communicated in advance to the public.

The bridge is anticipated to be open in 2026.

Questions? Contact the project team via email at infrastructure.delivery@vaughan.ca.

For more information, visit vaughan.ca/CDAAbridge.

QUOTES

“I am pleased to see another vital part of the City of Vaughan’s Action Plan to Fight Traffic Gridlock coming to fruition. The Canada Drive-America Avenue Bridge is a key infrastructure development project that will improve our quality of life, and construction is already underway! This new bridge will link two communities on either end of Highway 400, enhance our overall transportation network, allow residents to travel seamlessly by car, bike or foot and create another critical east-west connection that will help reduce traffic in our city. I want to thank the Government of Canada and York Region for investing in this important city-building project. When the Canada Drive-America Avenue Bridge opens in 2026, it will mark an incredible achievement in our ongoing efforts to keep Vaughan moving.”

- Mayor Steven Del Duca

“Today’s announcement is an example of what can get done when we work together. Our direct investments in the City of Vaughan through the Housing Accelerator Fund will make a real difference for the people who call Vaughan home. The federal government is dedicated to supporting people with their housing needs and making life easier for Canadians with the Housing Accelerator Fund. We are working closely with ambitious and innovative municipalities to accelerate the residential supply in Canada, support housing-related infrastructure, and strengthen our communities.”

- Francesco Sorbara, Member of Parliament for Vaughan–Woodbridge

QUICK FACTS

The City of Vaughan is building a bridge over Highway 400 to connect Canada Drive and America Avenue.
The design of the bridge includes a two-lane road with sidewalks and bicycle lanes on both sides – this will improve the flow of traffic, shorten travel times, create access to transit systems and promote active transportation options.
The bridge is anticipated to be open in 2026.
The total project construction cost for the bridge is $25 million with $9 million coming from the City, $8.5 million from York Region and $7.5 million from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund.
The Housing Accelerator Fund is a $4 billion initiative from the Government of Canada that is designed to help cities, towns, and Indigenous governments unlock new housing supply through innovative approaches. The City of Vaughan will receive an allocation from the Housing Accelerator Fund program in the amount of $59,153,675, disbursed over three years.