Ottawa's Light Rail Transit cleared a major hurdle Friday.
The city's major infrastructure received a big financial boost from the federal government ensuring the viability of the project.
At the Belfast Rail Yard on Friday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government is committed to helping Ottawa extend its light rail. As laid out in the 2017 federal budget, the federal government will give the city more than $1.15 billion to help offset the costs of expanding the LRT network.
Provincial Infrastructure Minister Bob Chiarelli was at the funding announcement Friday and said his government's financial commitment is firm.
At a price tag of $3.6 billion, Stage 2 LRT is poised to become the biggest infrastructure project in the city's history. It was approved unanimously by council in March.
The project also includes a link to the Ottawa-MacDonald International Airport. The airport authority will pay to build a station on its premise while the federal and provincial governments will provide the funds necessary to build the airport LRT spur.
Stage 2 LRT will also include work to widen Highway 174 and Highway 417 from Maitland Avenue to the connection at Highway 416, and an extension to Trim Road in the East.