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Cost-sharing agreement in place to twin Highway 40

February 21, 2020  By Newswire



The Alberta government, the Municipal District of Greenview and County of Grande Prairie have reached a cost-sharing agreement to twin Highway 40, south of Grande Prairie. The project involves twinning 19 kilometres of Highway 40, from Grande Prairie to just south of the Norbord Wood Panel Plant, and will include a second bridge across the Wapiti River, as well as numerous improvements to bridge structures and intersections.

 

The cost-sharing agreement means construction related activities, such as relocation of utilities and land clearing, can now begin as early as summer 2020.

“Our focus in Transportation is on maintaining our existing highways instead of building new ones, but projects like twinning Highway 40 are important for economic development and job creation. We need to think creatively about how to fund projects like this if we want them to move forward quickly, and that’s exactly what we did. The MD of Greenview and County of Grande Prairie’s agreement to cost-share means that Highway 40 moves off the unfunded project list and into the capital plan, accelerating construction to start this year,” said Ric McIver, Minister of Transportation.

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Traffic on this segment of Highway 40 has increased by approximately 70 per cent over the last five years.

“Highway 40 is part of our government’s commitment to build critical infrastructure that will create jobs and grow the economy. This project will not only improve the safety of this route but will lead to increased investment and needed jobs for Albertans. Highway 40 is a critical trade corridor for the Grande Prairie region and I’m pleased we have the support of the MD of Greenview as well as the County of Grande Prairie for this project,” said Travis Toews, MLA Grande Prairie-Wapiti.

Approximately 10,000 vehicles travel this segment of Highway 40 every day.

“The MD of Greenview recognizes the importance of collaboration; with our municipal partners, industry stakeholders, and other levels of government. Greenview Council is proud to support this shared funding opportunity that will improve the safety of the travelling public along this corridor that helps drive the economy throughout the region, said Dale Smith, reeve of Municipal District of Greenview.

This segment of Highway 40 sees double the heavy truck traffic (about 30 per cent) compared to the provincial average (about 15 per cent).

“The County of Grande Prairie is pleased to partner with the Municipal District of Greenview and the Alberta government to fund much-needed upgrades to Highway 40. This investment recognizes the urgency of expediting work on this key transportation link to improve safety for workers in the region’s resource sectors as well as tourists travelling to and from the mountain parks and beyond. Enhancements to Highway 40 are vital to stimulating economic development, including the recently announced Tri-Municipal Industrial Partnership Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Alberta. By working together, we can inject dollars into infrastructure upgrades when they’re most needed,” said Leanne Beaupre, reeve of County of Grande Prairie.

The Government of Alberta does not release cost estimates on projects until a contract has been awarded, but a project of this nature would typically cost between $100 and $120 million.

The Highway 40 twinning project will include:

  • 19 kilometres of highway twinning
  • A second bridge across the Wapiti River (with pedestrian walkway)
  • Numerous bridge structure and intersection improvements
  • Upgrades of existing lighting to LED
  • A median vehicle inspection station to aide in safety oversight of the commercial trucking industry.


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