Released on June 11, 2013
Nearly $60 million of bridge and highway improvements are underway in the Meadow Lake area this construction season.
The biggest project includes a $43.1 million grade and pave project on Highway 55. This includes a 26 km section from the Alberta border to 10 km east of Pierceland, and another 26 km section from Peerless due west, with the two projects meeting in the middle. The highway improvements also include a short 1.4 km section of Highway 26 just south of the Highway 55 north junction.
“Highway 55 is an important economic gateway, serving our northern uranium mines as well as the local pulp mill, sawmill and particle board plant,” Meadow Lake MLA Jeremy Harrison said on behalf of Highways and Infrastructure Minister Don McMorris. “These Highway 55 upgrades will create a significant stretch of primary weight corridor for shippers, and will enhance the drive for tourists and motorists alike. It’s a huge transportation improvement for the area.”
“Meadow Lake will certainly benefit from the repair work,” Meadow Lake Mayor Gary Vidal said. “Not only is this highway used as a major truck route, but it also carries significant tourism traffic to the Meadow Lake Provincial Park – the busiest provincial park in Saskatchewan with 350,000 total visits annually.”
The estimated completion time for this major Highway 55 project is fall 2014, pending weather and contractor progress. There is also a $12.6 million repaving project west of Green Lake on Highway 55, located 4.5 km west of the Junction of 903. Work on three sections of highway, totalling 33.9 km, will start and finish this summer.
Maintenance projects are also in the works this summer to address roughness and rutting on two Meadow Lake-area highways. A 9.7 km section of micro surfacing will occur on Highway 4, south of Meadow Lake, and an 11 km section of micro surfacing will occur on Highway 3, west of St. Walburg. The total value of these projects is more than $1 million.
Extensive bridge and culvert work is also underway this year in the Meadow Lake area. Two bridge replacements are taking place north of Turtleford – one over Canyon Creek and the other over Englishman River. A bridge rehab is also in the works over Turtle River, north of Turtleford. Crews are waiting for a major girder to be built in order to begin the repair.
Design and engineering is taking place this summer to fix a pier over the Beaver River, but the actual repairs won’t occur until next year. As well as a wooden box culvert is being replaced on Highway 155 between Buffalo Narrows and La Loche, and a culvert is being installed on Highway 924 to replace a small, aging bridge northeast of the junction at Highway 55. Because the majority of these projects have yet to be tendered, no dollar amounts are available.
All motorists are reminded they must slow to 60 km/hr in highway work zones. New simplified signage will direct drivers exactly when to slow to 60 km/hr. Drivers now face three times the normal fines for speeding and heavier enforcement in work zones. For everyone’s safety, slow to 60 km/hr.
The Government of Saskatchewan has invested a record $3.7 billion in transportation infrastructure since 2008.
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For more information, contact:
Lynette Piper
Highways and Infrastructure
Regina
Phone: 306-798-2116