Released on November 19, 2009
A record $630 million investment in Highways and Infrastructure in 2009-10 resulted in 1,580 kilometres (km) of highway improvements completed or underway over the course of the 2009 construction season, which began in the early spring and wrapped up in late fall in most areas of the province.
"As impressive as that number is, our goal is not simply to meet a target amount of kilometres," Highways and Infrastructure Minister Jim Reiter said. "Our goal is to make sure those improvements support and create economic development in tangible ways, create efficiencies and make our transportation network safer for motorists. With excellent support from the Saskatchewan Heavy Construction Association (SHCA) and consulting engineers this season, we were able to take major strides forward."
"At the start of the season we said we were ready to meet the challenge and we were," SHCA President Shantel Lipp said. "The volume of work accomplished this season is a good example of how industry and government can work together to efficiently deliver infrastructure projects. Project co-ordination and early tendering are all factors in getting a large amount of work done in a short construction season. As we look to the work expected next season, we will be building on a spirit of partnership developed this year."
Highlights include:
- A 5,000 km expansion of the primary weight highway network implemented July 1 to allow for heavier weights on a broader network of provincial highways nine months of the year;
- A total of 235 km in rural highway upgrades completed or in progress to create new primary weight corridors;
- 11 km of new, twinned lanes opened and 22 km of new roadbeds constructed on Highway 11 between Saskatoon and Prince Albert;
- Commencement of construction on roadways to carry heavy truck traffic to and from the Global Transportation Hub and on a new interchange and supporting roads at Lewvan Drive and Highway 1;
- 340 km of repaving on the highways that carry the heaviest traffic, including Highways 1 and 16;
- 970 km of timely light and medium maintenance work completed on paved highways throughout the province; and
- 55 bridge and culvert replacements and improvements completed or in progress.
"These numbers reflect much more than increased kilometres of smooth blacktop," Reiter said. "By twinning Highway 11 between Saskatoon and Prince Albert, we estimate a return on investment of $8 million a year in the value of time saved for shippers and motorists. By upgrading a rural highway like Highway 303 east of the Alberta border to be capable of carrying primary weight, we can calculate $25 million in long-term truck haul savings alone. This is what we're trying to achieve, and we've made great progress over the past construction season."
For more information on construction projects or to view the interactive road conditions map, go to www.highways.gov.sk.ca.
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For more information, contact:
Kirsten Leatherdale
Highways and Infrastructure
Regina
Phone: 306-787-8484
Cell: 306-536-9692