NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Ont. — Funding has been secured for the second phase of the redevelopment of the Queenston Plaza at the Queenston-Lewiston border crossing.

Funding for several improvements to the bridge complex and facilities was announced late last week by the Honourable Rob Nicholson, Member of Parliament for Niagara Falls, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, on behalf of the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, and Janice Thomson, chair of the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission (NFBC).

Contributions to this cost-sharing initiative include up to $62 million from the Government of Canada and $12.9 million from the NFBC.

Phase One of the redevelopment got underway in March 2007 and entailed the construction of new toll, parking and commercial inspection facilities. Phase Two includes the construction of a commercial vehicle secondary inspection warehouse, additional passenger primary inspection lanes, a new central building for the Canada Border Services Agency, a new animal inspection facility and the installation of a wall to separate traffic bound for Canada and for the US.

The Queenston-Lewiston bridge is the fourth-busiest Canada-US commercial and land border crossing. In 2007, bridge traffic accounted for approximately 920,000 two-way commercial vehicle crossings, or approximately 2,500 commercial vehicles per day. Improving the existing plaza will allow the NFBC to take advantage of additional capacity provided by the recently constructed fifth bridge lane, officials said.

This project is funded under the $33-billion Building Canada plan through the Gateways and Border Crossings Fund.