NIAGARA FALLS, ONTARIO – The Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., Q.C. Member of Parliament for Niagara Falls, Minister of Justice, and Attorney General of Canada, today announced a $1.4 million stimulus investment into an infrastructure project with the government of Ontario, and GO Transit.

Today’s investment of joint federal and provincial funding is for the construction of new GO Train platform in Niagara Falls. GO Transit commenced operating a weekend schedule from Toronto to Niagara Falls in June 2009, and approximately 50,000 people took the Toronto-Niagara train in its inaugural year. The Government of Ontario has once again provided this service starting on the Victoria Day weekend as a way to boost tourism and help ease traffic on the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW). The new platform will improve future GO Train service by providing custom clearance for trains, as well as allowing for the loading and unloading of full GO Trains.

“Through our Economic Action Plan, the Government of Canada has been improving and modernizing infrastructure across the country to build a strong foundation for future growth,” said Minister Nicholson. “Today’s announcement is great news for the Niagara region, local workers and the local economy.”

“I expect this is the next step in bringing full GO Train Service to the Niagara Region to the benefit of the residents, workers and tourists.” said Niagara Falls MPP Kim Craitor, “further more, it is a lot cheaper to “Go to Niagara” by train than taking a car for most people, so providing a safe separated platform is an essential next step in the evolution of our GO service.”

“GO is pleased to have continued support from both the provincial and federal governments for transit initiatives that make choosing to use transit an easier choice,” said Gary McNeil, GO Transit’s Managing Director. “We have had great success with our service to and from Niagara Falls and we look forward to supporting the growth of this great Region.”

Total estimated eligible project costs are $1.4 Million with the governments of Canada and Ontario each providing up to $700,000.

The Government of Canada contribution for this project is being provided through the $4-billion Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, a key component of Canada’s Economic Action Plan, which invests in construction-ready infrastructure projects that can be completed by March 31, 2011.

The contribution from the Government of Ontario will be from the two-year, $32.5 billion infrastructure commitment laid out in the 2009 Ontario Budget – Confronting the Challenge: Building Our Economic Future.

During these challenging economic times, the governments of Canada and Ontario have taken steps to get shovels in the ground and funding into targeted infrastructure projects across the province.