EDMONTON — The Province of Alberta is putting more than 775 people to work through both direct and indirect jobs in the Fort McMurray and north central region by investing in maintenance to highways, bridges, pothole repairs and other safety measures.
Funding for the projects comes from the accelerated capital maintenance and renewal envelope totalling $2 billion that government officials unveiled on April 9 to help jumpstart the province’s economy.
“Fort McMurray and north central Alberta have been hard hit in recent years with natural disasters and the oil price collapse,” said Ric McIver, minister of transportation, in a statement. “These road and bridge projects will provide hundreds of jobs for Albertans, keep companies moving and provide more value for taxpayers. We are taking action to fix our infrastructure now to get Albertans back to work.”
The road and bridge repair projects that have been funded in the Fort McMurray and north central region include:
- Repaving 35 kilometres of Highway 2, between Highways 13 and 39.
- Repaving 17 kilometres of Highway 63, between north of Mariana Lake to south of Sand Tiger Lodge.
- Hangingstone Bridge Replacement on Highway 63.
- Repaving eight kilometres of Highway 2, on either side of Highway 616.
- Repaving 18 kilometres of Highway 16, on either side of Highway 947.
- Repaving 13 kilometres of Highway 16, between Highways 32 and 751.
- Culvert replacement on Highway 16 near Wildwood.
- Preventative maintenance work to extend the lifespan of Highway 19.
- Culvert replacement on Highway 39 near Warburg.
- Preventative maintenance work to extend the lifespan along Highway 40.
- Culvert replacement on Highway 647.
In addition, $60 million is available provincewide to repair potholes and complete critical safety measures.
Once again the focus is on a small amount of “trades people” to push the economy. Instead of building plants that could employ thousands and help the long term economy of Alberta.