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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Construction will soon begin on the $7 million Kam Lake bypass road, which could be open to seasonal traffic as early as this winter.

Work can start now that federal Transportation Minister John Baird approved this year's list of projects from the territorial government that fall under the federal Building Canada Fund.

He signed off on the projects at a meeting with territorial leaders in Ottawa on Tuesday, which included Premier Floyd Roland and territorial Transportation Minister Michael McLeod.

"We have been ready to move ahead on this for some time," said McLeod.

"It's kind of a relief because some of this work we need to get done this winter."

McLeod said a contract could not be signed with the Kam Lake bypass road's contractor until Baird gave his approval.

"If they can sign the agreement within the next couple weeks, we should have at least a winter-style road in for this year's ice road season," said Mayor Gord Van Tighem.

The route, which connects the Kam Lake industrial park's Deh Cho Boulevard with Highway 3, runs mostly over a rock ridge, the mayor said.

The route would allow trucking traffic to bypass city streets and open up more land for industrial development.

Rowe's Construction will be building the bypass road, according to Larry Purcka with the Department of Transportation.

Under the Building Canada Fund - a seven-year, $245.8 million federal infrastructure fund - both the federal and territorial governments have to approve projects before work can begin.

Baird said the NWT has moved ahead aggressively to have projects approved.

"They wanted a decision and we gave it to them," he said.

The federal government provides 75 per cent of funding for approved projects under the fund, with the GNWT putting up 25 per cent.

Other projects approved included an access road to Tuktoyaktuk, highway improvements and water treatment plants in several NWT communities. Maintenance on Highway 3 was also approved on Tuesday.

Baird said the meeting was held to see what the government "could do to cut through red tape to get infrastructure projects approved."

Jobs generated for the projects can provide a "shot in the arm" for a struggling economy, he said.

Baird added the federal government would be aggressive in signing off on infrastructure spending. The federal transportation minister also consulted Roland and McLeod to see what they thought of having the remaining five years of the Building Canada Fund money fast-tracked over the next two or three years, in consultation with provinces and territories around Canada.

Roland and McLeod said they supported moving ahead with the funding, and also expressed interest in receiving additional funding following that period.

"Will they consider additional dollars and where will they put that in? And if they are going to, then the North needs to be taken into consideration about additional investment," said Roland.

The accelerated funding through the Building Canada Fund could be announced in the federal budget on Jan. 27.

Roland did not talk about his 10-year, $1 billion cost-sharing infrastructure proposal at the meeting with Baird, but pushed for the construction of a Mackenzie Valley highway.

Baird called the premier's proposal a "strong pitch," but added the cost of the Mackenzie highway would be greater than what has currently been allotted for the NWT. This would be taken back to federal cabinet for consideration, he said.

McLeod said the territorial delegation brought up concerns about lapses in housing funding. He said the NWT is one of the first jurisdictions to get their second-year approval for funds, adding some provinces had not even decided what to use their first year's funding for.