Northern News Services

Yellowknife (June 08/05) - About a quarter-century after work began, the entire route from Yk to the Alberta border should be paved by October.

The territorial Department of Transportation reports there are only 33 km left to go on Hwy. 3, at a cost of slightly more than $12 million.

The project began in 1983, with crews focusing on Highway 1.

"I think we're winding up for the last spike," said Kevin McLeod, NWT director of highways.

It will be an historic moment, not just for the North, but for the whole country.

The road between Rae and Yellowknife represents the final stretch of the national highway network that's still a gravel surface, he said.

"We're planning a celebration, but details haven't been finalized yet," said Bob Kelly, a transport spokesperson.

"Certainly the federal transport minister, the infrastructure minister and our Western Arctic MP are keeping a close eye on our progress."

The 2005 portion of the job is keeping about 80 workers, most of whom are with contractor RTL Robinson Enterprises, busy for six months.

Crews run in two 12-hour shifts and are housed at a camp behind the quarry at kilometre 310 of Hwy. 3 between Yellowknife and Rae.

Many challenges

Building a paved link with the south provides many challenges for the engineers working for the transport department. McLeod said staff members have done a wonderful job coping with the need to straighten curves and improve sightlines while protecting the permafrost encountered along the route.

"If you just build over permafrost it can turn into a sloppy soup," he said.

"It's like building on an ice cube and you never know when it's going to let go.

The preference is to re-route the road around such patches, but that's not always an option due to the surrounding geography.

When the highway needs to run over frozen ground, McLeod said a wider surface with broader shoulders and gently sloping embankments help to dissipate heat and keep everything from melting.