City of Hamilton says it’s on track to keep Red Hill Valley Parkway promises

The City of Hamilton says it’s on track to finish all thirty-six recommendations that came out of the Red Hill Valley Parkway judicial inquiry by 2026.

The inquiry, which released its findings in 2023, found that the Red Hill Valley Parkway had major design flaws and slippery asphalt that contributed to several fatal crashes between 2008 and 2019.

In 2014, testing on the friction levels of the parkway raised serious safety concerns, but Hamilton’s former director of engineering services failed to share that report.

The City says it chose to pursue the judicial inquiry in 2019 to ensure transparency and give the community long-awaited answers.

Thirty-six action recommendations came from its findings. Since then, city staff have been working to complete these recommendations.

“I appreciate the work done by Staff and their progress on the 36 action items,” Mayor Andrea Horwath said in a statement.

“The City’s lack of disclosure of information related to the Parkway was inexcusable, and the inquiry was part of Council’s dedication to transparency and ensuring the mistakes of the past are not repeated.”

So far, nine of the 36 recommendations that came from the inquiry have been completed.

The largest portion of the recommendations are related to traffic safety. City officials say they have completed seven action items related to traffic – including the Annual Collision Report, which presents an overview of road safety based on the last five years.

“While there’s still more work to do, the City is taking meaningful steps to strengthen transparency, improve information sharing with Council and the public, and enhance collaboration across departments,” City manager Marnie Cluckie said.

“We are committed to doing this work – learning from the inquiry, acknowledging past mistakes, and keeping the community informed on progress.”

READ MORE: Collisions on Red Hill Valley Parkway could have been avoided: report