Tom feels vindicated, wants things to go back to the way they were

It was during a late winter snowstorm in 2013 that Tom Featherstone decided he’d had enough.

He said was driving on Highway 17N through five to six inches of snow with not a snowplow in sight.

When he drove past the yard where the plows are stationed, he said he couldn’t see a single track going in or out of the facility.

“That was the breaking point, I decided to do something about this,” said Featherstone by phone Wednesday.

He became somewhat of a fly in the ointment for the Ministry of Transportation (MTO), who oversee the highways in Ontario.

“I just kept sending the same email over and over again until I got a response. I think it was about the tenth time I finally got a response from the MTO,” said Featherstone.

The eventual MTO response stated the highways were being cleared to standard, a claim Featherstone disagrees with.

So it came as no surprise to him when he read about today’s Auditor General’s report on winter road maintenance which claimed maintenance standards had fallen since performance based contracts with snow-removal contractors was enacted starting in 2009.

“Personally I think anyone who has been involved in a serious accident due to highway conditions in the last couple of years should be going to a lawyer given this information. They should be holding the provincial government liable because they haven’t been doing their job,” said Featherstone about the findings.

Living in Goulais for the past 26 years, Featherstone drives the highways daily.

“Traditionally out here the highway was always top notch. You didn’t have to worry about the conditions on the highway, it was once you got within city limits the driving got difficult.”

“We have issued fines to companies and contractors who have not lived up to the high standards and conditions we have put in the contracts,” said Sault Ste. Marie MPP David Orazietti.

“My top priority when it comes to highway maintenance is ensuring the safety of residents in our community and their ability to travel safely,” said Orazietti.

After the 2012-2013 season, the MTO increased the amounts of equipment in Northern Ontario and fined Transfield, the contractor who won the bid for the Sault Ste. Marie Maintenance Area from White River to Highway 108, for not meeting provincial standards.

“I have to admit things got a little better this year after all of the fines. They seemed to take things a little more seriously and I have seen the MTO trucks checking the highways during the winter,” said Featherstone.

“Money had more to do it than anything else. Once they started losing more money it got their attention,” he added.

Algoma—Manitoulin MPP Michael Mantha, reacting to the Auditor General’s report, noted in some cases fines were waived by MTO and equipment was given to contractors at cost to Ontario taxpayers.

“When you signed the contract you were supposed to have a certain level of equipment in order to provide the service. Now you’re rewarding them by removing a fine that is imposed on them?”

A statement to SooToday from Orazietti's office reads as follows:

“There are circumstances where MTO will work with a contractor instead of fining them, in order to find opportunities to get a better end result. If a contractor was to miss their circuit time they could be charged a fine, which in some cases could be as large as $5-million. In a case like this it might be better to work with the company to ensure that they can achieve the end goal of clear, safe roads than to be overly punitive with a fine. These choices are made with consideration to the contractors record and past problems (i.e. first offence).”

Previous SooToday coverge of this story:

Michael wants the Ontario government to apologize for risking your life

(PHOTO: Highway 552 is pictured between the Bellevue Valley Road and Highway 17 in January in this photo by Tom Featherstone. Submitted)

Editor's Note: The above article has been edited to clarify attribution.