Route 3B: Hydro One set to build new power line across Lakeshore and Chatham-Kent

Hydro One provides an update on the proposed Longwood to Lakeshore Transmission Line project. CTV Windsor’s Michelle Maluske explains.

Hydro One revealed Wednesday the selected route for a new transmission line which will end in Strathroy, Ont.

The 120-kilometer route will begin at the Lakeshore Transformer Station, just outside of Comber, before crossing Highway 401 west of Tilbury.

It will then cross and follow the Thames River through Chatham, across the north end of the urban portion of the municipality.

“Route 3B was chosen because it has the least impact on residential and commercial properties and crosses fewer features with archaeological and cultural heritage protection including avoidance of the North Buxton National Historic site which is (affiliated) with the underground railroad,” Sonny Karunakaran, Vice President of Strategic Projects and Partnerships said during a media briefing.

Karunakaran also said Route 3B has the lowest impact on the environment and any species at risk along the route.

He told the media the route will use 25 kilometers of “idle transmission line”, although he didn’t say where the idle line is currently located.

Land acquisition to begin

Hydro One will now begin the process of contacting all the impacted landowners to purchase the property they need for the towers.

“Transmission lines can be co-located with many land uses. Agriculture in the area is a perfect, co-location with the transmission towers,” Karunakaran said. “We work with the landowner to ensure that wherever we are placing the infrastructure we mitigate (and) minimize any impacts to their existing operations.”

He said Hydro One had “100 per cent voluntary settlement” with all 120 private landowners needed for the 50-kilometer Chatham to Lakeshore transmission line that was energized last fall.

“We take that aspect very seriously,” Karunakaran said. “We try and work very closely with (landowners) to make the micro refinements and adjustments, where practicable, such that people, transmission lines and their existing operations can exist in harmony.”

Public Information Sessions

To move the project to the next step, Hydro One has organized a series of Town Hall meetings to go over the finer points of the plan:

Thursday, May 15 from 7 to 8 p.m. (Virtual open house hosted on our project website)

• Wednesday, June 4 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Chatham
• Thursday, June 5 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Tilbury
• Wednesday, June 11 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Thamesville
• Thursday, June 12 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Glencoe

Residents or landowners who cannot attend can give their feedback on the project website.