Whether it’s over a pedestrian sidewalk, a bicycle path, a safety railing or some combination of the three, Athabasca town council is fully justified in making a fuss over Alberta Transportation’s plans for the new Highway 55/813 intersection.
Remember first of all that Athabasca never asked for this. It’s Alberta Transportation that deemed the redesign of the interchange a necessity; the community essentially had no choice but to accept the situation and the required sacrifices, like the destruction of the River’s Edge Campground and the creation of an artificial channel at the mouth of the Tawatinaw River.
If that’s the situation Athabasca must accept, then the very least town council can do is absolutely insist that the new interchange be done properly. Sure, it may be difficult today to envision a bridge over the Tawatinaw as a popular cycling route; but we’re not building this bridge for today. Alberta Transportation owes it to the community to ensure all aspects of the new interchange serve not only the traveling public for years to come, but serve Athabasca as well.
One would like to think Alberta Transportation would do the job properly of their own volition, but it appears town council will need to hold them accountable.
Stick to your guns, council.
