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Rebuilding the roads Millions spent to pave the way for resource development
Kassina Ryder
Northern News Services
Published Monday, July 8, 2013
NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
The Government of the Northwest Territories' $600-million commitment to improve infrastructure over the next 10 years is welcome news for Wrigley, says the community's acting senior administrative officer.
A glimpse of distant mountains while driving along Highway 1 to Wrigley. Highway 1 will receive a $30-million improvement including widening and chip sealing, moving ditches and installing new signage. - NNSL file photo |
One of the roads identified for improvements is Highway 1, set to receive $30 million in improvements, including widening and chip sealing the road, moving ditches and installing new signage. A portion of the road, from Kilometre 85 to 188, will be paved with asphalt, the report also stated.
Wrigley's D'Arcy J. Moses said the community welcomes the upgrades.
"It is definitely a needed improvement," he said.
Moses said the road's condition wreaks havoc on residents' vehicles and flat tires are regular occurrences on any journey out of town.
"First of all, the road is very rough and it's hard on vehicles," he said. "It could cause motor vehicle accidents. It's just very hard on people's vehicles, what with flat tires and damage to undercarriages."
But travelling on the Mackenzie Highway is a necessary evil for most community members, Moses said.
"It's the only way for most people to get in and out of the community," he said. "Not everybody can afford the luxury of flying."
Moses said resurfacing the road is a main concern.
"In some areas, for stretches at a time, it's like driving your vehicle over cobblestone. It just shakes up the entire vehicle," he said. "I think the number-one priority is just keeping the road smooth and even so there is not so much damage. A lot of damage incurred is also flat tires from sharps rock and lack of gravel."
The Highway 1 project is just one of several outlined in Corridors for Canada III report, released by the territorial Department of Transportation, outlines proposed plans to rebuild roads, bridges and ferry landings throughout the NWT. It also includes improvements to airports in Norman Wells, Yellowknife and Inuvik.
The federal New Building Canada Fund will provide money for the projects, with the Provincial-Territorial Infrastructure Fund providing $415 million and the additional $185 million coming from the National Infrastructure Fund.
Moses said resource development would also benefit from the upgrades.
"It's a very important asset," he said. "That's almost a no-brainer."
Improving roadways is a vital step to resource development in the territory, according to the report. About 35 per cent of Canada's marketable natural gas and about 37 per cent of its recoverable light crude oil is found in the North, according to the National Energy Board.
The territory is also home to an estimated 81-trillion cubic feet of natural gas and almost seven-billion barrels of oil.
Combined with diamond mining and rare mineral mining, resource development in the territory is expected to contribute between $54 and $84 billion to Canada's Gross Domestic Product over the next 30 years, according to the report.
The report also referenced the 2012-2013 Annual Survey of Mining Companies, published by the Fraser Institute, which stated that out of the 96 most appealing areas in the world for mineral exploration and development, the NWT came it at number 29.
All eight of NWT's highways are being recommended for improvements ranging in cost from $3 million to $60 million.
Plans also include realigning the Tlicho winter road to primarily run over land instead of on frozen lakes, and extending the winter road from Fort Good Hope to the Dempster Highway.
In addition to roads, the plan recommends permanent ferry landings at Fort Simpson, N'Dulee, Tsiigehtchic and Peel River.
Permanent bridges are also recommended for Bosworth Creek, Oscar Creek and Great Bear River in the Mackenzie Valley Corridor.
Three airports are slated for improvements, including a complete replacement of Inuvik's airport terminal.
Recommendations also include extending the runway in Norman Wells and new taxiways and interior roads at the Yellowknife airport.
The projects will help boost tourism, according to the report.
"Domestic and foreign visitors using the highway and airport system contribute $90 million in direct spending annually into the NWT economy," the report stated.
Improvements could eventually bring down the cost of living in the territory by reducing reliance on aircraft to ship in goods, it also stated.
Moses said no matter what traffic ends up on the road, he's just glad Wrigley residents will have a safer ride on their essential link to the outside world.
"It's just keeping the roads maintained so that they're safe for members of the community to come and go," he said. "Obviously on that road, our biggest concern is safety."
Corridors for Canada III comes on the heels of Corridors for Canada II, a $200-million investment in transportation infrastructure over seven years between the territorial and federal governments in 2005. The first instalment of Corridors for Canada was unveiled in 2002 with a $130-million investment over six years.
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