This project was put out to bed years ago.  It was determined that any benefit would be outweighed by local residents' concerns, which include:

• Noise and vibration
• Pollution
• local traffic congestion
• value of homes diminished 
• kettle Island environmental protection
• Airport and RCMP's stables' demise

This has only been brought to the forefront again by Minister McKinnon.  Now in cabinet, he believes his time for his little pet project has come; for his constituents in Gatineau.  He has no understanding of Manor Park nor the residents' concerns.  This is the most short-sighted project the city has ever witnessed. 

My issues are as follows: 

1. -  estimated cost is between $3 billion and $4 billion.  Please consider what that money could do for other traffic issues and infrastructure projects in city.
2. - Kettle Island is a protected environmental piece of land. The federal government gave most of the island to the conservation group as a protected natural gift.The legal agreement bans any form of disturbance on the island.  One  cannot build structures, put in a wooden dock, drain water, or change the soil.
3. - The bridge and road extension will impact 1) The Ottawa Rockcliffe Airport 2) emergency access to the Montfort Hospital 3) the RCMP stables, pastures and musical ride grounds 
4. - building a new highway (nine km) for heavy traffic will disrupt local residents and homes with noise and ground-shaking equipment.  
5. - heavy truck traffic along this nine km highway will create noise, vibrations, and pollution along the corridor.   Many homes are within metres of the proposed route.  
6. - value of homes nearby will diminish, by heartbreaking amounts.  Quality of life for residents will also decline. 
7. - Manor park is a well-established, and 80 year old residential area.  Putting truck lanes adjacent to this popular neighbourhood is, in my opinion, insane. 
8. - only a small proportion of truck traffic will be diverted from the the MacDonald Cartier bridge/King Edward to Kettle Island. 
9. The problem will remain on king Edward, and will set up a whole new set of problems only five kms to the east. 
10. - local streets/roads cannot handle any additional traffic coming from Gatineau.