The Independent Staff

Enniskillen and Plympton-Wyoming are hoping upgrades to Churchill Line will help entice Lambton County take over the road.

The two municipalities are spending $1 million to upgrade the road between Oil Heritage Line to Forest Line. Enniskillen Mayor Kevin Marriott says $400,000 was spent last year preparing the base of the road. In the last few days, paving has begun on the road. Marriott says the road will be paved to Black Ash Road this year and then all the way to Forest Line next year.

Marriott says the repairs are, in part, an effort to turn the road over to the county. “We actually want to see the county extend Churchill Road (on the west side of Oil Heritage Road) all the way to the Forest Road,” says Marriott. “It should be a county road.”

There had been informal discussions with the county about the possibility of taking over the road but Lambton will only take on refurbished roads.

“Now that we are going to have it upgraded, we are going to approach them again…this time we’re going to make sure it is done formally,” says Marriott.

That will be done after the roadwork is complete in 2014.