Highway 44 will get an injection of provincial and federal government money over the next two years.
As part of an April 20 announcement, a 38-kilomtre stretch of Highway 44 south of the Town of Westlock will be repaved and the Bear Creek bridge crossing, about three kilometres from Jarvie, will get its culvert replaced.
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Communities and the Alberta government’s Ministry of Infrastructure and Transportation have pitched in $535 million for 96 projects, which includes 1,150 kilometres of highways being repaved along with 50 kilometres of new highway construction.
“As you know, highways are crucial to trade and transportation within the province and across the country,” federal Minister of Infrastructure and Communities Amarjeet Sohi said at a press conference April 20. “They see heavy traffic volumes and support the agriculture and natural resources sector so important to our economy.”
Alberta Transportation’s public affairs officer Nancy Beasley Hosker said costs and construction dates for the projects in Westlock County are not available as neither has gone up for tender and details are under review by staff.
Alberta Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation Brian Mason said he expected all projects would be under construction by 2018.
“Most of the projects will be underway this year. There are a few that will not start until next year, but we have ranked our priorities according to specific criteria, and that includes condition of roads, what the traffic expectations are, are there safety issues that have been identified and so on,” he said.
The Highway 44 project includes a 38-kilometre overlay south of town to one kilometre north of Highway 642 in Sturgeon County.
Westlock County Div. 2 Coun. Albert St. Louis said construction is happening sooner than he expected.
“I think it’s awesome that the government’s looking after infrastructure in rural Alberta,” he said.
County council had met with Alberta Transportation months ago, he recalled, and was pleased to see work going ahead.
“Sounds like it’s going to happen this year, so that’s good,” he said.
“They move quite fast on it once they get going. I would image they’d get it all done this summer, hopefully anyway.”
The Highway 44 overlay is one of 14 highway projects under the Northern Alberta Highway Rehabilitation project, including improvements on Highway 2 in Sturgeon County. The federal and provincial governments have split the $96.7 million bill.
Up in the Jarvie area, the Highway 44 bridge crossing Bear Creek, about three kilometres from the hamlet, will also get a culvert replacement.
Div. 7 Coun. Dennis Primeau had not heard about the announcement but knew that work had been progressing on the highway since last year.
“We’re always happy when they do maintenance and repair work on the highway,” he said.
“That’s something we always look forward to seeing them too some of that work.”
The Bear Creek culvert replacement is part of the $42 million bridge renewal project and one of 13 bridges undergoing some form of replacement, reconstruction and widening.
“I think it’s important to note that both of our governments recognize the incredible value of investing in infrastructure as a path to creating good paying jobs and supporting direct and indirect business and support the work that they do to build our future,” Mason added.
