The giant blue signs are designed to be impossible for drivers to miss.
Commuters chugging along the Greater Toronto Area’s vast highway network over the past few months have been confronted with promotional signs touting the construction of Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass – two signature projects that Premier Doug Ford views as key to helping him win over voters.
The first of these roadside government promotions appeared on a cold December night in 2023 when contractors for the provincial government drove stakes into the ground to install an imposing new sign.
Over several nights that month, road closures were brought in to allow workers to install a total of five signs promoting the two routes.
“Highway 413: Part of our $28 billion plan to build roads and highways,” one of the Tory-blue billboards read.
But just weeks after they thought they were finished, the contractors were back
In January, workers returned to remove the signs they had installed and replaced them with a new, scaled-up version boasting a larger font — all at the behest of Premier Ford’s office.
Through a series of emails obtained using freedom of information laws, Global News has learned the signs were initially rushed, then re-designed and re-printed because the premier’s office felt the visuals needed to be larger — each time costing taxpayers additional money on government promotion.
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The emails suggest the entire process — with each sign replacement costing about $16,000 — was guided, and reversed, by political staff around Premier Ford.
The “visual identity” of the signs promoting the two highway projects was a key fixation for Ford’s office, which demanded five signs that had already been set up be reprinted to increase the font size and reduce the amount of blue space on them
“Understanding that will come with a cost,” an official relayed in an email.
Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said the government was “wasting taxpayer dollars on Tory propaganda” by installing the signs.
“It just shows you that Doug Ford is more interested in Doug Ford than what is good for the people of Ontario,” he told Global News.
A spokesperson for the premier’s office said the signs “follow standard signage protocols consistent with major infrastructure projects across all ministries.”
‘A stop-gap’
The communications obtained by Global News show that, from the very beginning, there was an urgency to get signs promoting the two highways installed as quickly as possible.
When staff began to consider the plan in October, they already knew that smaller signs would be installed immediately and then ripped out of the ground in the weeks that followed.
Officials with the Ministry of Transportation agreed to install smaller signs “ASAP” to appease the premier’s office, praying political leaders would feel they were large enough once they saw them by the side of the road.
“They will be quite large signs and once they are constructed, hopefully decision-makers would also feel that the signs are large enough,” one email said, outlining how they could be replaced if they had to be.
A response sent on behalf of Ford’s team said his office — known as “PO” for short — was on board with the idea of buying and installing temporary signs, repeating the desire to see bigger signs up as soon as possible.
“So yes, 22 x 12 as a stop-gap until the larger versions can be developed,” the staffer wrote. “PO has once-again reiterated that they would like the 26 x 13 up ASAP – they are hoping MTO can have these up sooner than late winter/early Spring.”
A total of 10 signs were ordered to promote Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass, to be installed along Highway 400, 401, 404 and 10. Installation of the first set of signs — which would be ripped out of the ground barely a month later — began on the evening of Dec. 11, the communications show.
The Ministry of Transportation confirmed to Global News the signs resulted in lane closures, which were scheduled overnight to reduce their impacts.
“The government is responsible for making the public and stakeholders aware of its projects, programs, and their benefits,” they said in a statement.
“We communicate this through various avenues including media, community engagement sessions, public education materials, news releases, and signage.”
‘Direction from PO’
Despite an initial rush to get the signs installed, Ford’s office ordered an unexpected pause in December. Officials were told not to install any signs until a photo opportunity could be arranged.
“The direction received by us is that no signs are to be installed in the field until after the communications event at the Sign Shop,” one email said.
The tight control that Ford’s office kept over how the signs would be designed and developed is clear throughout the communications.
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At the beginning of the process, the premier’s office told the Ministry of Transportation it wanted the signs to include a line highlighting how much the Ford government had committed to spend on public infrastructure.
“The message direction from PO has been to include ‘Part of our $30 billion plan to build roads and highways,’” one email said.
After the first five signs were installed, the same staffer followed up with the Ministry of Transportation to say the signs had to be changed to reflect a “new visual identity” cooked up in the premier’s office.
They also said the signs — which had previously been bilingual — should be English only.
When the signs were finally in place, Ford’s office requested pictures.
“If there’s any ability to capture any of the below once up, in-situ, PO would greatly appreciate you sharing,” the email said. “Nothing professional, not for all instances, just a few quick snaps to share would be great.”
‘Replace all signs with new signs’
The decision to order new lettering for the highway promotion signs did not come cheap, the emails show.
Two options were considered to fulfil the premier’s office’s wishes — buying and installing new signs or replacing the ones that were already in place.
The government ultimately decided to rip out the signs it had already installed and replaced them with new versions. Removing and replacing the signs was marginally cheaper than covering them with a new image, with officials estimating the former option cost $193,000 compared to $272,000 to install covers.
The replacement plan the province opted for was pegged by staff at $16,000 per sign — $10,000 to print the new materials and $6,000 to install it.
Five signs had been installed and five were placed on hold in January as new marketing ideas were dictated by Ford’s office.
The Ford government would not confirm the final cost of the signs to Global News.