Drivers who commute to and from Toronto will have a new place to get a coffee and a snack starting Monday morning, as a new ONroute opens along Highway 400 southbound.
ONroute stations are a common sight in Ontario along 400 series highways and as of Sunday, the final touches were being made at the newest site in Innisfil.
Starting on Monday at 8 a.m., the new rest stop will be open for business – replacing the old service centre that was at Highway 89.
“It was a combination of space and right of way for the highway,” says Ken Tanenbaum, chairman of ONroute. ”The highway was going to be expanded; the Highway 89 interchange will ultimately be replaced.
There are 20 stations like this across the province, where they service roughly six million drivers every year. With all the cottage county traffic heading back to Toronto, this station is expected to be a busy one.
“We're going to have about 325,000 drivers come through in a year, so in a typical month in that neighbourhood, 900 to 950 drivers, but in the summer that could go as high as 1,500,” says Bruce Allen, president of Canadian Tire Petroleum Team.
The spot isn't just good news for drivers, but also for the local economy and people who have been trying to find work.
Robyn Monaghan is a grade 11 student and was looking for a summer job. The search wasn't going well, until positions opened up here.
“It was really difficult to be a new person who hasn't worked yet, when they want people who have experience. The day I applied, that day, I got a call back,” says Monaghan.
The $20 million facility will be open 24/7, so there's always a place to grab that quick cup of coffee before hitting the road.
