$12.5M of federal money coming to 'structurally deficient' Sask. highway in flood-prone area
A Saskatchewan stretch of highway will be getting a facelift after the federal government announced $12.5 million towards an upgrade and rehabilitation project.
Highway 55 is a northern corridor that stretches across Saskatchewan from Manitoba to Alberta.
A section of it, located northeast of Carrot River, is the closest major highway to Red Earth and Shoal Lake Cree Nations. It also serves as a connector road for both communities.
That stretch of road is important for regional businesses and the forest industry as well.
"It is in poor condition and structurally deficient in a flood-prone area, resulting in delays, detours, potential isolation and public safety risks," said a news release from the federal government.
People from the Red Earth Cree Nation — about 65 kilometres east of the town of Carrot River — have evacuated several times in recent years due to rising water levels along the Carrot River.
Leaders from the community have called for called for stronger flood prevention and mitigation measures to be put in place such as flood barriers and dykes around access roads.
To help reduce those risks, more than 50 kilometres of Highway 55 will be fixed to make it more efficient during flooding season.
The provincial government will be matching that amount as well.
"Highway 55 is very important, not just to the economy, but to the safety of the Carrot River Valley," said Fred Bradshaw, Saskatchewan Party MLA for Carrot River Valley, during the announcement on Tuesday in Prince Albert, Sask.
He said there's an ambulance service that provides care for Red Earth and Shoal Lake, but the highway is sometimes "Very bad and it's very hard to get down that highway to get efficient medical attention out to either Red Earth or Shoal Lake."
Bradshaw said some of the core testing has already been done on the highway as part of the project.
'Economic godsend'
There are two lumber mills in the Carrot River Valley that will benefit from the project, according to Bradshaw.
"This is going to be a great economic godsend for our area, well actually, for all of northern Saskatchewan," he said.
Bradshaw joined Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale for the announcement.
"It shows the two governments can work together on getting this highway done up to primary weights," said Bradshaw.
Goodale said construction will start during the upcoming construction season, but he said it will take "several construction seasons" for the project to be finished.
