(Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Highway improvements?

Rural residents identify cracks in local highway improvement plan

Mar 16, 2021 | 5:00 PM

Plans by the provincial government to rehabilitate a section of highway northwest of Prince Albert, are not sitting well with the drivers who use the road on a daily basis.

The cost to re-surface a 17 km stretch of Highway 355 west, was earmarked at $9 million and the work was started last year, with a projected fall completion date. Over the winter however the pavement cracked and there are sections with holes a few inches deep. Bill Hayes, Div. 6 councillor for the Rural Municipality of Buckland, told paNOW he’s had a few calls about it from concerned residents.

“When you go past the second curve, I see that it’s pretty much been broken up and gone down to basically gravel,” he said.

Because the road is a provincial responsibility, Hayes said there’s not much he can do beyond forward the calls to the Ministry of Highways. Acknowledging the wet year last year, and noting crews were unable to finish work on schedule, Hayes explained mother nature does have a way of slowing things down.

“I’m surprised they didn’t actually just pave that road because with the amount of traffic that is on it, both from the reserve side and people that are going up to the lakes,” he said.

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After the turn off from highway 2 north, the drive down 355 gets steadily worse. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

A statement provided by the Ministry of Highways confirmed crews were unable to complete the work before winter, and the project was put on hold until the 2021 construction season.

“Over the winter, there was minor damage to some of our rehabilitation work. Once warmer weather returns, crews will return to the area, repair the winter damage and then complete the full project,” the Ministry said, adding work is expected to resume by early May, weather permitting.

In the meantime, Taylor Gareau has written a letter to MLA Nadine Wilson’s office, expressing her family’s frustration with the work done.

“I am concerned about the stone chips and maintenance repairs my vehicle will require from driving on this ‘highway.’ I am also concerned about property value as I don’t know many people who would want to drive on these roads to live out here,” she said.

Marcel Rabut also lives in the area and also expressed his frustrations to paNOW.

“That to me is a lot of tax payer money that’s been wasted,” he said.

One coat of re-surfacing has not held up to to traffic. (Submitted photo/ Taylor Gareau)

In addition to the farm vehicles that travel the road on a daily basis, and people who commute to and from the city, Rabut said he’s also concerned about the numerous emergency vehicles, police and ambulance, he sees travel the road regularly.

“They don’t slow down and they can’t slow down,” he said.

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nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell