Nova ScotiaNova Scotia Public Works Minister Fred Tilley thinks his government has finally found a path to completing a long-delayed highway project. 9.5-km twinning project was supposed to be complete in 2023Michael Gorman · CBC News · Posted: Oct 16, 2025 4:40 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours agoAn aerial view of the Windsor aboiteau along Highway 101. (Brian MacKay/CBC)Nova Scotia Public Works Minister Fred Tilley thinks his government has finally found a path to completing a long-delayed highway project.Tilley said Thursday his department submitted a new design proposal late last month to Fisheries and Oceans Canada for a structure that would replace the aboiteau near Windsor and allow for the completion of the Highway 101 twinning project between Falmouth and Three Mile Plains.“I feel that we’ll be able to get this job done,” he told reporters following a cabinet meeting in Halifax.The file has stretched on through two provincial governments and even more cabinet ministers. The 9.5-kilometre project was first announced in 2016 and was supposed to be complete in 2023.But a new overpass that will cross the Avon River has not been able to be completed because the province has so far failed to provide a design that would meet federal requirements for improved fish passage. Nova Scotia Public Works Minister Fred Tilley, pictured on June 26, 2025. (Dan Jardine/CBC)The Progressive Conservatives have promised that any new design would also preserve Lake Pisiquid, the man-made lake created 50 years ago with the construction of the Windsor causeway.Tilley told reporters that he believes the new design proposal will satisfy everyone, but he refused to provide any details beyond that.“It’s currently in the hands of DFO, so until they come back with either questions or further consultation, basically I’m going to leave it there.”NDP Leader Claudia Chender described the project as “a very persistent and challenging file and conversation.”WATCH | The Avon River overpass was supposed to be done in 2023. Why isn’t it finished? :The Avon River overpass was supposed to be done in 2023. Why isn’t it finished?The twinning project between Three Mile Plains and Falmouth was supposed to be completed almost two years ago. The CBC’s Michael Gorman explains why, after so many delays, officials feel an end could be in sight. With people arguing both for and against maintaining the lake, and concerns that include First Nation consultation and access to water supply in a time of emergency, Chender said Tilley and his government owe the public more information.“If there is a new solution then I think it behooves the government to let people know about it, to socialize that idea to help people understand what it is that they’re trying to put forward as a solution.”Interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette said the file has dragged on for too long and he can think of no reason why Tilley should withhold details about the province’s submission to DFO.Tilley said it would take about three years to complete construction once the province has the necessary federal approvals. To date, the project has cost about $135 million. The original budget for the work was $151 million.MORE TOP STORIESABOUT THE AUTHORMichael Gorman covers the Nova Scotia legislature for CBC, with additional focuses on health care and rural communities. Contact him with story ideas at michael.gorman@cbc.ca
Province hopes latest design for Windsor aboiteau replacement gets DFO approval
