TORONTO — The Ontario Minister of Transportation is reminding trucking company dispatchers and others the new Herb Gray Parkway in Windsor which connects from Hwy. 401 has been open for more than two weeks and Hwy. 3 is closed heading to the bridge crossing, according to the Ontario Trucking Association.

MTO says many truck drivers still appear unaware the new expressway is accessible and instead they continue to head down Hwy. 3, then they try to find their way around the closure by winding around residential streets, much to the annoyance of residents.

It also urges travelers and carriers to be patient with some growing pains as the entire project moves toward full completion.

MTO sent the following details about accessing the parkway, restrictions, ongoing construction and other related issues:

As part of the construction staging for the Rt. Hon. Herb Gray Parkway, a portion of the below-grade Hwy. 401 between North Talbot Road Bridge and Labelle Street will open to both westbound and eastbound traffic prior to the entire project being completed. Links to photos, maps and other information related to this opening can be found here.

Temporary Traffic Configuration

Westbound Highway 401 traffic between the existing Hwy. 401 and Huron Church Line will be in a three- lane configuration. The speed limit in this stretch is 80 km/h. West of Huron Church Line, the number of lanes will decrease from three to two with the third lane closed. These two lanes of traffic will continue to the westbound Hwy. 401 off-ramp to Hwy. 3/Huron Church Road and re-connect with the at-grade Highway 3 (northbound Huron Church Road). The speed limit through this stretch of Hwy. 401 is 60 km/h.

Eastbound Hwy. 401 traffic from southbound Huron Church Road (eastbound Hwy. 3) will enter the below-grade Hwy. 401 via the on-ramp east of the Bethlehem Avenue intersection. The highway will be in a three-lane configuration through to the existing Hwy. 401. The speed limit through this section is 100 km/h.

Border-bound Hwy. 401 Traffic

Travelers originating on Hwy. 401 or travelers who enter below-grade Hwy. 401 from a parkway on-ramp and are destined for the Canada-U.S. border will continue along Hwy. 401 within the parkway corridor, exit at the westbound Hwy. 401 off- ramp to Highway 3/Huron Church Road and continue on Huron Church Road northbound toward existing border crossings.

Ongoing Construction Works

The partial opening of Hwy. 401 allows for traffic to be shifted from Hwy. 3 to Hwy 401 so that construction works can be completed on Hwy. 3. During this stage of construction, travelers will experience short-term ramp and road closures along with other construction works.

If you plan to travel through the corridor, officials urge you to visit the “What’s Happening” section or the interactive map on the project website or check out its Twitter feed before you head out to find the latest traffic information.

You can visit the Rt. Hon. Herb Gray Parkway website. Updates are posted on Twitter and Facebook, while photos and videos are posted on Flickr and YouTube.