The Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) is proposing a new regulation that would, for the first time, make provincial road construction standards mandatory for municipalities across Ontario. Good Roads is sharing this update so members can understand what is being proposed, what it means for your operations, and what steps are available to you.
Background
As part of the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025, the province amended the Public Transportation and Highway Improvement Act (PTHIA) to give the Minister of Transportation new authority to set mandatory standards for municipal road construction. A proposed Minister’s regulation is now under development to put that authority into effect.
What the Proposed Regulation Would Require
The proposed regulation would mandate the use of Ontario Provincial Standards for Municipal Road Construction (OPSS.MUNI) in three priority areas: hot mix asphalt, aggregates, and drainage. While there are 259 OPSS.MUNI standards in total, MTO is taking a phased approach — the current proposal covers only these priority areas, with standards related to electrical, concrete, and metal work expected to follow in future regulatory phases.
In addition to technical standards, all municipalities would be required to use the OPSS.MUNI 100 General Conditions of Contract as the standard set of terms and conditions in contracts with third-party road construction contractors.
Key Date: March 30, 2026
MTO has posted the proposal on the regulatory registry. To provide comments on these proposed changes, please visit the regulatory registry and submit your feedback before March 30th, 2026. MTO has indicated it will continue to engage municipal and industry stakeholders throughout implementation and is developing a modernized governance framework to ensure ongoing technical input into the standard review process.
Key Date: July 1, 2027
All municipalities must be in compliance with the mandatory standards by July 1, 2027. This transition period was established in direct response to stakeholder feedback about the potential for project delays and cost impacts on work already underway.
Exemption Process
The proposed regulation includes a process for municipalities to request an exemption from a specific standard. Requests must be submitted to MTO with supporting documentation, including details about the project in question and a rationale for why an exemption is appropriate. The Minister will evaluate requests based on criteria such as capital and lifecycle costs, worker and road user safety, project scheduling, material availability, unique site conditions, and environmental sustainability.
Reporting Requirements
Municipalities would be required to submit annual reports to MTO on their application of the mandatory standards. The Minister would have the authority to publish information from these reports.
Member Feedback
We want to hear from you. Do you foresee large transitional costs with these changes? Are there contractual provisions that would be affected by these new standards? We would like to know how these changes affect your municipality. Member feedback on regulatory matters like this helps us advocate effectively at the provincial level.
Good Roads will continue to monitor this regulatory proposal and engage with MTO on behalf of our members. If you have questions or concerns about how this proposal may affect your municipality, please reach out to the Good Roads team.
For more information, please contact Good Roads at info@goodroads.ca or visit goodroads.ca.
