Ontario will remove tolls from the public portion of Highway 407, the Ford government has confirmed, delivering on an election promise made in February but stopping well short of demands from many groups to work on buying back the entire toll route.
On Tuesday, the province announced it would remove the tolls from Highway 407 East, which runs through Durham Region from Brock Road to Highway 35/155, beginning on June 1.
The government said it was also making a cut to the provincial gas tax permanent.
The move has effectively been in place since 2022 and renewed with a biannual news conference, but the 2025 budget will include measures to reduce the tax without the need to keep extending the pause.
The gas tax cut has cost the government $1.7 billion since it was first introduced.
“I know that families and business owners are worried about rising costs, especially as U.S. tariffs threaten to raise the price of everyday essentials,” Premier Doug Ford said in a statement.
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“That’s why we’re cutting the gas tax permanently and taking tolls off Highway 407 East, and that’s why we’ll always keep looking for ways to put more money back into the pockets of Ontario families.”
Both promises were included in the Progressive Conservatives’ 2025 election platform.
Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said the latest announcements were good news for the local area.
“The measures announced today will not only help to reduce traffic and commute times, but they will help put money back in the pockets of hardworking families at a time when it matters most,” Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said in a statement.
While the government’s announcement offers relief for drivers on a portion of Highway 407, the majority of the roadway will continue to be operated and tolled by a private company.
As the province has pushed more expensive highway construction projects, and gridlock has continued to worsen, Ford has considered buying back the entirety of Highway 407 from the company which currently leases it.
Premier Ford mused about the idea for months but suggested it could cost $35 billion.
At one point, he said the government should sit down with executives at Highway 407, and his transportation ministry said it was something being discussed — before the premier appeared to cool on the idea during the election.
Opposition parties say negotiating a deal for truckers to use Highway 407 for free or buying the asset back entirely would be cheaper than constructing new highway routes, including Ford’s hope to tunnel a new expressway under Highway 401.
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