These Sault councillors want to drive fast on Highway 17

Two Sault Ste. Marie city councillors are pushing for a 20-km/h speed limit increase on Highway 17 east of the Sault.

Ward 4 Couns. Stephan Kinach and Marchy Bruni will ask their fellow councillors next week to support increasing the speed limit to 110 km/h from the current 90 km/h.

Their request follows a decision by the province permanently raising speed limits last month on 10 sections of provincial highways in northern and southern Ontario.

That change built on similar increases in 2022 on six pieces of provincial highways in southern Ontario and two sections in northern Ontario as part of a two-year trial, bringing Ontario in line with posted speed limits in other parts of Canada.

Here's the full text of a resolution that Couns. Kinach and Bruni will present at Monday's council meeting.

The meeting will be live-streamed on SooToday starting at 5 p.m.

Highway 17 speed increase 

Mover: Coun. S. Kinach
Seconder: Coun. M. Bruni

Whereas the Ministry Transportation Ontario recently increased the maximum speed limit to 110km/hr on many newly updated sections of the Trans Canada highway on July 12, 2024; and

Whereas most of Ontario’s highways were originally designed to safely accommodate speed limits of 110km/hr; and

Whereas most new model vehicles have advanced safety features such as adaptive cruise control and lane monitoring technology; and

Whereas Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan have a maximum speed limit of 110km/hr and British Columbia maximum speed limit is 120km/hr; and

Whereas as the Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria stated data collected from 2022 shows evidence-based speed increases are a common-sense change to make life more convenient for Ontario drivers while bringing our highway speed limit in line with other Canadian provinces

Now therefore be it resolved that Mayor Shoemaker be requested to write a letter to Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria for consideration of Highway 17 Sault Ste. Marie to Thessalon for a maximum speed limit increase along the sections on two-lane divided highway from the current 90km/hr.