Ontario replacing Hearst truck inspection station, adding 14 km of passing lanes on Highway 11
Ontario is replacing its truck inspection station at Hearst on Highway 11, with completion expected in December 2026, and is adding 14 kilometres of new passing lanes along the same northern corridor.
The Ministry of Transportation announced the work on October 1, 2026. It said the station would strengthen commercial vehicle enforcement in the north and that the passing lanes would improve traffic flow and reduce the risk of collisions.
The inspection station
The province says the project includes:
- demolishing the existing station, which was under way when the project was announced
- replacing the scale
- putting up a new pre-engineered building
The contract went to Villeneuve Construction. The ministry did not give a project cost in the release.
Drivers on Highway 11 near Hearst should expect construction activity at the site until the work is finished. The release did not say how the station will operate during construction.
The passing lanes
The new passing lanes, 14 kilometres in total, will be near five townships on Highway 11: Benoit, Calder, Gill, Grenfill and Kendrey. The province said they will let faster traffic get safely around slower vehicles. The release did not give a timeline for the passing lanes.
Part of a wider northern push
Ontario runs 35 truck inspection stations, several of them open around the clock. The province said it is also running a commercial vehicle enforcement initiative and safety blitz across northern Ontario.
The Hearst project follows the province's $30 million commercial vehicle inspection facility on Highway 11/17 in Thunder Bay, which opened in 2024. In its comment on the Hearst announcement, the Ontario Trucking Association also referred to a recent announcement that the Thunder Bay scale will move to 24/7 operation.
Northern municipal groups welcomed the work and said they would keep pressing the province to four-lane or twin Highways 11 and 17. Trucking groups, including the Canada Truck Operators Association and the Women's Trucking Federation of Canada, also backed the investment.
The province estimates that trucks carry about $3 billion worth of goods on provincial highways every day.
For carriers running Highway 11 through the north, the takeaway is to expect more scrutiny: a new station at Hearst, the round-the-clock Thunder Bay operation that OTA said is coming, and an active enforcement campaign across the region. Make sure your trucks and paperwork are ready for inspection.