The Highway 407 East Phase 2 project will extend Highway 407 22 kilometres from Harmony Road in Oshawa to Highway 35/115 in Clarington. It will connect Highways 401 and 407 East with a 10-kilometre East Durham Link (“EDL”), called Highway 418, that will serve as a north-south freeway and provide eight new interchanges, as well as, three freeway-to-freeway connections to Highway 407 East and Highway 401 from the East Durham Link and Highway 35/115.
The works to be completed include:
- An 8 kilometre, 4-lane freeway from the Harmony Road to Highway 418.
- A 14 kilometre, 4-lane freeway from Hwy 418 to Hwy 35/115.
- Interchanges on Highway 407 East Phase 2 at Enfield Road, Regional Road 57, Darlington Clarke Town line, and Highway 35/115.
- A new 10 kilometres, 4-lane Highway 418 that will connect Highway 401 to Highway 407 East
- Interchanges on Highway 418 at Highway 2 and Taunton Road.
- Freeway-to-freeway connections to Hwy 407 East and Hwy 401 from Hwy 418 and Hwy 35/115.
- A supporting maintenance facility.
Section 1
Section 1 achieved the Phase 2A opening and the activity below happened in the remaining part of the Interchange between Highways 407 and 418. In this phase the team installed over 785 m of concrete girders in two structures, 90m of Box Culvert M79 and the excavation of a waste of Pond 61w, 16,500 m3. Tiago Sampaio, Section 1 Manager said: "Being able to achieve this milestone was a great accomplishment for everyone involved in this project, in particular Section 1 team. The hard work and effort paid off. It is rewarding to see a final product that complies with Ferrovial's high standards. As far as additional outstanding work for phase 2B, winter weather has allowed us to complete the installation of the last precast structures, two bridges and one box culvert, that will be completed later in 2018."Section 2
Section 2 performed activities such as the deep foundations, substructures, girders erections and superstructure formwork to prepare for upcoming warmer weather. Some of the mayor activities carried out this winter season included 1,500 m. of pipe piles and 750 m of H piles driven; 22,000 m3 of concrete in Substructure elements, 1,600 m. of NU girders installed and 6,200 m2 of deck ready to pour from May. José Luis Beltrán, Section 2 Manager said:"Work around the cold weather and the half load restrictions in the area on the early spring created constraints which required a clock-work like managed schedule to achieve the project goals. We are now prepared the next tasks on schedule while delivering expected the expected quality".
Section 3
Section 3 was active on the Highways 418 and 401 Interchange. Planning around weather conditions and maintaining a steady pace was paramount. The main quantities performed were the installation of 120 m of Steel girders over CP Railroad and Hwy 407, 508 m of NU concrete girders, 1,900 m2 of concrete deck panels and 1,565 m3 of concrete poured in substructure elements (pier caps, abutment, columns). Félix Marques, Section 3 Manager said: "The installation of the Steel Girders over the 401 Highway was challenging. Girders were fabricated in Montreal and their transportation to site was limited to days without snow; challenging to predict in the Canadian Winter. Girder installation over the 401 highway was allowed under full closure at night. The crews overcame the challenges of the strong wind from lake Ontario and frigid -25C temperatures. The installation of these girders took a few weeks. It was critical that there was no snow accumulation during the installation period. To achieve this 'snow-free' challenge we creatively used heaters to pump warmth through hoses that melted the snow or ice". Ferrovial Agroman Canada, as partner in Blackbird Constructors with Dufferin Construction, is using drones for the following activities:- Quantify earthworks (excavation and embankment) in a monthly basis for progress payments
- Produce videos/pictures for progress review
- Produce aerial photos in areas with difficult access
