was removed and replaced with a signalized left turn for the NE quadrant loop ramp, enabling a continuous noise barrier to be placed in place of the former directional ramp. However, the Sarnia-Lambton Chamber of Commerce was concerned that the new noise barriers would cause travelers to overlook the city. A partnership was formed between the municipality and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation to make additional aesthetic improvements to the highway corridor within the city that would be funded by the community, including a "City of Sarnia" landscaped sign that was completed in 2001. In 2007, the southern part of the Front Street interchange was realigned. It was originally a parclo AB2 (folded diamond) configuration when it opened in 1982, since Highway 402 needed to cross a railway as well as Front Street; however the railway has since been removed by the 1990s allowing a new on-ramp to Highway 402 eastbound to be built in the SE quadrant. For the overpass carrying eastbound highway traffic, the acceleration lane which previously served the now-removed loop ramp in the SW quadrant was instead allocated to a new on-ramp from the Canada Border Services Agency secondary inspection; previously transport trucks exiting the customs plaza had to make a right-turn from Marina Road to the highway which caused considerable congestion. On Monday, December 13, 2010, a whiteout caused by lake-effect snow squalls left an stretch of Highway 402 closed for several days. Lambton County officials declared a state of emergency. Although the entire distance between Sarnia and London is subject to occasional snow squalls and whiteout conditions, they usually dissipate or move in less than a day. The exceptional conditions at that time were caused by a snow squall which remained stationary over several days, dropping up to two metres (6 ft) of snow in some parts of the area. Defence Minister Peter MacKay sent two Canadian Forces Griffon helicopters and a C-130 Hercules to Sarnia to aid in the search-and-rescue efforts. The hospitality of locals in providing shelter for stranded motorists was the primary focus of local media coverage. The highway was reopened to traffic on the morning of December 16. A single death was reported; a man succumbed to hypothermia on a nearby county road. Highway 402 was widened in the Sarnia area from four to six lanes due to extensive traffic backups from the bridge crossing towards the USA; the westbound