Over the past four months, a small, but vocal group has used misinformation and scare tactics to create opposition to the Causeway Improvement Project. They have made three deputations to Norfolk County Council and initiated a letter-writing campaign asking Council to abandon the Project. In response, we asked members of the community who support the Project to write letters or e-mails to Council encouraging the Mayor and Council members to maintain the Council’s endorsement of the Project, which it provided in July in response to a deputation by the Causeway Project Steering Committee. We are publishing a selection of quotes[…]
LPCIP News
Hunt: Majority favour Causeway improvements
By Daniel Pearce, Simcoe Reformer When Coun. John Hunt was an OPP officer in the 1970s, he was called to the Long Point causeway on a regular basis — often to an ugly scene. Due to “a combination of speed, booze, and trees,” the narrow, shoulderless stretch of road from the mainland to the point became a deadly alleyway, Hunt recalls. Drivers would lose control and crash straight into a tree.Back then, he says, many people, including himself, thought the causeway would be safer if the trees were cut down and the road widened. But environmentalists were opposed because it[…]
Causeway committee pleased with progress of project
By Jeff Helsdon Staff Writer, Tillsonburg News Long Point Causeway Improvement Committee paraded its successes Wednesday on improving the fifth deadliest section of road in the world for turtle mortality. The committee, which has broad representation from a diversity of community groups, has been working to address the roadkill problem. It is also looking into ways to make the causeway safer for people and allowing water flow between the marsh and bay. Representatives of the many organizations involved were invited to the area on Wednesday to see progress to date. Earlier this year, the committee installed 2.5 kilometres of barrier[…]
Frequently Asked Questions
Road mortality study
Here’s a scientific study on road mortality on the causeway by Paul Ashley and Jeff Robinson of the Canadian Wildlife Service.
Causeway Turtles a hit at Bayfest
Two turtles and a frog marched in the annual Bayfest parade alongside a trailer carrying a large map showing proposed improvements to the Long Point Causeway.The turtles (Claire Levick and Kelly Brown) and frog (Jessica Meyers) were a big hit with kids of all ages in the crowd and had their photo taken with Mayor Dennis Travale. Several hundred people dropped by an information booth set up at Bayfest by the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project. Adam Wilson, with the Long Point World Biosphere Reserve Foundation, and Scott Gillingwater of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority answered questions about the[…]
Causeway trees to Long Point saved
Sun Media The London Free Press SIMCOE — The willow and cottonwood trees along the causeway to Long Point will not be cut down, says the latest policy statement from the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project committee. Co-ordinator Rick Levick said the committee wants to be “loud and clear.” The initial project called for cutting down some of the trees for a wider roadway and other safety improvements to the 3.5-kilometre road. But the group has responded to public concern about the plan. “The (committee) is committed to working with the community and Norfolk County to define a vision and[…]
Work underway to reduce road kill on causeway
Work to reduce the annual road kill of turtles, snakes and frogs on the Long Point causeway began this week thanks to $30,300 in financial support from Ontario’s Species at Risk Stewardship Fund. The funding for the causeway work was announced by Toby Barrett, MPP for Haldimand-Norfolk, on behalf of Minister of Natural Resources Donna Cansfield. The Long Point Causeway Improvement Project (LPCIP) is installing one-metre high, temporary fencing along sections of the causeway where studies have shown that most road kills occur. Mounds of sand will also placed in the road allowance to create alternative nesting sites for turtles[…]
Project Plan
You may wish to download our complete plan to improve the Long Point Causeway. This is a 50 megabyte file so it will take a couple of hours to download if you have a slow connection.