407ers Man the Trailers

A bunch of comfortable looking trailers alongside the sleek operations center of the 407-ETR toll road at 6300 Steeles Avenue West Operations Center evidence how radically the investors of 407 ETR Concession Company (CC) have reshaped the way it does business. Empty are the former 20th floor executive offices of the Ontario Transp Capital Corporation downtown on 200 King Street which they inherited when the privatization granted them the concession. Everyone’s now based where the action is.

407-ETR Concession Company, the CINTA-led group has bought out the operations contract with Canadian Highways Management Corp (CHMC) and also the toll operations contract with Raytheon HTMS. Those subs are out, though many of their staff have transferred to 407-ETRCC. All the operations are now done by salaried staff. The new owners have also made major changes to the customer service systems.

Jennifer D’Angelo, head of CHIC sub Canadian Highways Management Corp, who under OTCC was in charge of operations, and a couple of other senior CHIC people have left. D’Angelo says the toll road is better off with a simpler organization: “It was too complicated before.” She’s doing some consulting these days, and expresses interest in how Melbourne CityLink, 407’s successor is doing.

Work got under way last summer on the western extension of the road but the eastern extension is delayed by a shift of wetlands permitting to federal jurisdiction. (Morrie Rae Hutnick 407ETRCC MRHutnick@407etr.org, Jennifer D’Angelo 905 469 07210)