Speak up for wildlife
The Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) have been planning a major expansion of Highway 401 between Brockville and Mallorytown—right through one of the most ecologically significant corridors in the Algonquin to Adirondacks (A2A) region. This section of road cuts across the Frontenac Arch, a globally recognized Biosphere Reserve and key pathway for wildlife movement.
This study includes plans for the replacement and rehabilitation of bridges and culverts, as well as interchange modifications. Importantly, a large focus of their work has also been identifying a future Highway 401 footprint for an expansion to an interim six lanes, and an ultimate eight lanes through this area.
The A2A Collaborative has been actively engaging with the MTO throughout this process to ensure that wildlife and landscape connectivity remain central to planning decisions. We’ve shared input based on A2A's Right to Roam Report, which highlights the challenges Highway 401 poses to wildlife movement and proposes mitigations designed to safeguard their passage across this and other major roads in this continentally significant area. Several of our recommendations —such as those addressing the Jones Creek area—are directly applicable to this study corridor.
On April 23, the MTO and Stantec hosted a Public Information Centre (PIC) to share their preliminary findings and gather public input. Representatives from the A2A Collaborative — including Luke Howie (Road Ecology Chair), Emily Conger (Communications Chair), and Cameron Smith (former Road Ecology Chair) — attended to firmly voice our position on the importance of protecting wildlife movement and maintaining ecological connectivity in this vital corridor.
The public comment period is now open until May 26, 2025, and we encourage you to submit a comment to help shape a more ecologically responsible plan. We've created a comment template you can use to submit feedback and help ensure the final plan reflects the ecological importance of this region. Personalized comments are especially impactful!
This study includes plans for the replacement and rehabilitation of bridges and culverts, as well as interchange modifications. Importantly, a large focus of their work has also been identifying a future Highway 401 footprint for an expansion to an interim six lanes, and an ultimate eight lanes through this area.
The A2A Collaborative has been actively engaging with the MTO throughout this process to ensure that wildlife and landscape connectivity remain central to planning decisions. We’ve shared input based on A2A's Right to Roam Report, which highlights the challenges Highway 401 poses to wildlife movement and proposes mitigations designed to safeguard their passage across this and other major roads in this continentally significant area. Several of our recommendations —such as those addressing the Jones Creek area—are directly applicable to this study corridor.
On April 23, the MTO and Stantec hosted a Public Information Centre (PIC) to share their preliminary findings and gather public input. Representatives from the A2A Collaborative — including Luke Howie (Road Ecology Chair), Emily Conger (Communications Chair), and Cameron Smith (former Road Ecology Chair) — attended to firmly voice our position on the importance of protecting wildlife movement and maintaining ecological connectivity in this vital corridor.
The public comment period is now open until May 26, 2025, and we encourage you to submit a comment to help shape a more ecologically responsible plan. We've created a comment template you can use to submit feedback and help ensure the final plan reflects the ecological importance of this region. Personalized comments are especially impactful!
📩 Directly submit our comment by clicking on this link: [email protected]
Your comments can send a strong message to decision-makers and help influence the project.
📣 Key asks include:
🕐 Deadline: May 26, 2025
➡️ More information: Highway 401 Planning Study
Together, we can advocate for smarter infrastructure that works with nature — not against it.
📣 Key asks include:
- Designing a wildlife-friendly open span bridge
- Widening existing culverts to accommodate wildlife movement
- Avoiding expansion into forested areas and Parks Canada lands
- Installing fencing to guide animals to crossings
- Applying a long-term, climate-resilient lens to infrastructure upgrades
🕐 Deadline: May 26, 2025
➡️ More information: Highway 401 Planning Study
Together, we can advocate for smarter infrastructure that works with nature — not against it.
The right to roam:
A STRATEGY TO RECONNECT A CONTINENTAL WILDLIFE PATHWAY IN THE FRONTENAC ARCH
The Right to Roam report is the culmination of over a decade of research, drawing from both existing data and our own field studies on Highway 401, Thousand Islands Parkway, and Leeds County Road 2 in the Thousand Islands–Frontenac Arch region. These roads, which run parallel to the St. Lawrence River, severely hinder wildlife movement, creating barriers that disrupt natural migration patterns and pose substantial risks to animal populations—including alarming rates of wildlife mortality.
The Thousand Islands–Frontenac Arch region is a critical wildlife corridor, linking Canada’s boreal forest with the Appalachian forests of the United States. Ensuring safe passage for animals across these dangerous roads is vital to maintaining healthy wildlife populations throughout eastern North America.
Right to Roam addresses these critical issues, offering a bold strategy to restore connectivity, reduce wildlife mortality and improve driver safety in this critical continental wildlife pathway.
What to Expect:
The Thousand Islands–Frontenac Arch region is a critical wildlife corridor, linking Canada’s boreal forest with the Appalachian forests of the United States. Ensuring safe passage for animals across these dangerous roads is vital to maintaining healthy wildlife populations throughout eastern North America.
Right to Roam addresses these critical issues, offering a bold strategy to restore connectivity, reduce wildlife mortality and improve driver safety in this critical continental wildlife pathway.
What to Expect:
- Understand the impacts of roads on wildlife and connectivity
- In-depth analysis of priority wildlife pathways in the A2A region
- Highlights from previous road ecology studies
- Case studies of successful mitigation measures for reducing roadkill and improving connectivity
- Strategic recommendations for mitigation measures, including wildlife crossings
View the full Road Ecology Report
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Right to Roam Fast Facts
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