Ontario Investing Over $5.5 Million in Road Repairs For Dryden & Fort Frances

June 17, 2025

DRYDEN & FORT FRANCES – As part of it’s plan to protect Ontario, the government is investing a combined $5.5 million to help the City of Dryden and the Town of Fort Frances with road and highway repairs. The funding is being delivered through the 2025-26 Connecting Links program, which helps maintain vital roads and bridges that connect people to good jobs, support the movement of goods and drive economic growth in rural and northern communities.

“Families in the Northwest deserve safe and reliable roadways — whether it’s getting to work, taking their kids to school, or making sure local businesses can move their products,” said Greg Rickford, MPP for Kenora—Rainy River. “Through the Connecting Links program, our government is making targeted investments to ensure municipal partners, like Mayor Harrison and Mayor Hallikas, have the tools they need to succeed in strengthening these local corridors.”

Projects include:

  • Up to $3,000,000 to the City of Dryden for the reconstruction of Duke Street between Casimir Avenue and Earl Avenue.
  • Up to $2,511,394 to the Town of Fort Frances for the reconstruction of Scott Street (Highway 11) from Mosher Avenue to Armit Avenue.

“On behalf of the City of Dryden, I want to express my gratitude to Minister Rickford and the provincial government for the Connecting Links funding to renew a major and much-travelled road section of Duke St/Hwy 594,” said Jack Harrison, Mayor of the City of Dryden. “This funding is extremely important as it aids in the on ongoing efforts as a city to replace aging infrastructure in Dryden. We really appreciate Premier Ford’s government partnering with us on this vital work.”

“The maintenance of roads in our community is a high priority,” said Andrew Hallikas, Mayor of the Town of Fort Frances. “This Connecting Links funding will allow us to maintain and improve Scott Street which is a major roadway and essential to transportation across the municipality. The Town of Fort Frances is grateful to Minister Rickford and the Connecting Links program for their generous assistance.”

A connecting link is a designated municipal road or bridge that connects two ends of a provincial highway through a community, or to an international border crossing. This year, the Ontario government is investing $45 million in 29 projects to repair roads and bridges in 27 municipalities across the province.

“Over the next decade, our government is investing nearly $28 billion into highway infrastructure that will support our growing population and fuel our economy as we fight back against U.S. tariffs,” said Prabmeet Sarkaria, Minister of Transportation. “We will continue to protect Ontario by supporting our municipal partners and delivering on our promise to make our province more competitive, more resilient and more self-reliant.”

Eligible costs for Connecting Links include the design, construction, renewal, rehabilitation and replacement of designated municipal roads and bridges. Municipalities are encouraged to apply for 2026-27 Connecting Links program funding when the intake opens later this year.

QUICK FACTS:

  • The Connecting Links program provides funding for up to 90 per cent of eligible project costs. This includes a maximum of $3 million for road projects and $5 million for bridge projects.
  • In Ontario, there are a total of 352 kilometres of Connecting Links, with 70 bridges in 77 municipalities.

LEARN MORE:

Connecting Links Program