What's the hold-up with the new Frank Channel Bridge? N.W.T. MLA wants to know

It's been over a year-and-a-half since the N.W.T. government promised construction to replace the Frank Channel Bridge near Behchokǫ̀ was imminent, and that work has yet to even begin. 

Now the MLA for the Tłı̨chǫ region wants to know: what's the hold up?

"They started this quite a few years ago, and they were doing some work — then all of a sudden, it stopped," Jane Weyallon Armstrong, MLA for Monfwi, told CBC News.

"They can't just stop. We have to keep building on it, because that bridge is going to fall apart. There's a lot of structural issues with it that we have to get serious about."

Originally built in 1960, the Frank Channel Bridge is part of Highway 3, the only roadway that links the North Slave region to the rest of Canada. The highway serves as the gateway to the ice road serving the N.W.T.'s diamond mines.

It's also the only roadway connecting the Behchokǫ̀ neighbourhoods of Rae and Edzo, and is used to transport goods into the community.

Construction promised for 2022, but never started

The territory started making plans to replace the bridge back in 2018. The deputy minister of infrastructure at the time noted it was cheaper to build new than try and repair the existing one.

Three years later, Transport Canada and the N.W.T. government announced a joint $50 million towards the project – $37.5 million from Ottawa, $12.5 from Yellowknife — with construction expected to begin in 2022 and be complete by 2024.

But much to Weyallon Armstrong's dismay, that never happened.

"No construction — nothing," she said. "The bridge is still as it is."

Weyallon Armstrong, who is a resident of Behchokǫ̀ herself, said the Frank Channel Bridge has become a major safety issue for her community. A litany of potholes and patchwork make it dangerous for vehicles to cross, and at times, practically impassable for larger transports.

It's also concerning that youth in Rae have to use the bridge every day to get to Chief Jimmy Bruneau School in Edzo, Weyallon Armstrong continued, as it puts them at greater risk should an accident happen.

"They are our future, and their lives matter," she said. "We have to do something."

'This is a serious issue'

On Thursday, Weyallon Armstrong raised the issue in the N.W.T. Legislative Assembly and pushed Infrastructure Minister Diane Archie for details on what was behind the delay.

Archie chalked it up to a funding shortfall as inflation makes construction more expensive, but said her department is in talks with Transport Canada to receive more. As such, she could not provide a timeline for when the replacement project would be started or completed.

"We know it's a priority. We know it's something that we need to get done," Archie said.

In the meantime, Archie said there are a number of options the territorial government could look at to improve safety on the bridge, such as weight limits, rumble strips, or signs urging caution from drivers.

A spokesperson for the Department of Infrastructure later told CBC News that about $400,000 has been spent so far on preliminary engineering works, including geotechnical assessments and a climate change study. Another $830,000 has been committed for conceptual designs.

The spokesperson also noted that the department inspects bridges in the territory for safety compliance every three years, with the last one completed in July 2021.

Speaking to CBC on Thursday, Weyallon Armstrong said she wasn't satisfied with the minister's  "vague" answers.

"I don't know if they really understand the nature of this bridge…[and] what we're dealing with," she said, adding that it could eventually become a liability for the territory if construction is delayed for much longer.

Moving forward, Weyallon Armstrong said she would like to see more timely updates on where the project is at and more engagement with leadership in the Tłı̨chǫ region.

"I want the local leaders … to come and see for themselves too, because this is a serious issue."