(Government of Alberta)

By Sheldon Spackman

$8 Billion Invested Over Three Years

Province touts another successful highway construction season in 2023

Jan 11, 2024 | 3:06 PM

Hundreds of road and bridge projects completed in 2023 will reduce traffic congestion and enhance travel on Alberta’s busiest roads, say provincial officials.

During the 2023 construction season, Alberta’s government says it invested $1.13 billion in 250 projects, supporting thousands of jobs across the province. This investment in Alberta’s roads and bridges ensures people, goods and services can move safely and efficiently, say government officials, supporting the growth of communities and industry.

“Alberta’s highways are so important to our quality of life,” says Devin Dreeshen, Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors. “Whether it’s getting your kid to hockey practice or businesses getting their products to market, we all rely on a safe and efficient road network. Alberta’s government will continue to invest in road and bridge projects to help ease congestion, enhance safety and promote economic growth.”

The government says the 2023 construction season included new and ongoing major road projects, such as repaving, bridge rehabilitation and replacement, slide repairs, road expansion and water management infrastructure projects. General maintenance work was also said to include repairing potholes, sealing cracks, painting lines, grading gravel roads and installing guardrails. Project highlights include:

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• Almost $90 million was invested into the West Calgary Ring Road, the final leg of the Calgary Ring Road, which was fully opened to traffic on Dec. 19, 10 months earlier than expected.
  • Designed to accommodate up to 100,000 vehicles per day by 2025, the completed ring road includes 197 bridges and 48 interchanges.
  • The completed Calgary Ring Road provides 101 kilometres of free-flow travel, enhancing access to markets and supporting economic growth for the City of Calgary and surrounding area.

Deerfoot Trail improvements (Calgary)

• Improvements to the Deerfoot Trail and 64 Avenue interchange were completed ($6 million).
• Construction began for interchange improvements at:
  • 11 Street/Beddington Trail (estimated total investment $19 million)
  • McKnight Boulevard (estimated total investment $44 million)
  • Bow Bottom Trail/Anderson Road/Southland Drive and Glenmore Trail (estimated total investment of about $595 million)

Southwest Anthony Henday Drive expansion (Edmonton)

• Final work to expand the southwest portion of Anthony Henday Drive was completed and the road was fully opened to traffic on Nov. 24 (estimated total investment $100 million).
  • The expansion from four to six lanes will accommodate 120,000 vehicles per day, reducing travel time for commuters.

Southern Alberta

• Significant paving work was completed, including major projects on Highway 3 in Crowsnest Pass, Highway 3 near Taber, Highway 36 and Highway 2 north of Fort Macleod (total $70 million).
• Construction continued on the Highway 1 Wildlife Overpass and associated fencing project east of Lac Des Arcs (estimated total investment $17.5 million).
• Reconstruction on Highway 817 between Bow River and Highway 901 was completed, including realigning the Highway 24 connector and installing guardrails, illumination, signs and rumble strips, and painting lines (estimated total investment $30 million).
• Work continued on the Cochrane Interchange at Highways 1A and 22 (estimated total investment $131million).

Central Alberta

• Three Hills Creek Bridge on Highway 587 near Wimborne was replaced (estimated total $2.25 million).
• Phase 2 of the Highway 11 Twinning Project is 95 per cent complete and the highway is fully open to traffic (estimated total $28 million).

Peace Region

• Considerable progress was made on the Highway 40 Twinning Project (total estimated investment $228 million).
  • Phase 1 is approximately 95 per cent complete. This work includes 10 kilometres of twinning from 68 Avenue in Grande Prairie to south of the Wapiti River on Highway 40, including twinning of the Wapiti River Bridge.
  • Phase 2 is approximately 80 per cent complete, including 10 kilometres of twinning from south of the Wapiti River to Township Road 700.
• Construction on the two-year project to rehabilitate the Little Smoky River Bridge on Highway 49 near Guy was completed (total estimated investment $5.3 million).

North Central Region and Fort McMurray Region

• Work continued to realign and twin 3.5 kilometres of Highway 19 from east of Range Road 261 to Highway 60, and to upgrade Highway 60 south of Devon (estimated total investment $65 million).
• Work continued on the Athabasca River Bridge near Athabasca.
  • First pier is complete and work is underway on a second pier (estimated total investment $74 million).

Water projects

• $11.5 million was invested in the Dickson Dam, located 20 kilometres west of the town of Innisfail and 50 kilometres southwest of the city of Red Deer. Upgrades were substantially completed to the service spillway to enhance capacity of the dam.
• Work continued on the $744-million Springbank Off-stream Reservoir, with 60 per cent of the material placed for the dam and completion of the Highway 22 grade raise, both roadway bridges, the emergency spillway and the diversion outlet control structure.
• $8 million was invested into the Kleskun Hills flood mitigation project. Construction and rehabilitation is substantially complete on several sections of the project’s concrete infrastructure.

Alberta government quick facts

Budget 2023 invested almost $8 billion over three years in Transportation and Economic Corridors’ Capital Plan, including:

• $2 billion in capital investment for planning, design and construction of roads and bridges
• $1.7 billion in capital maintenance and renewal for highway and bridge rehabilitation projects
• $379.8 million for water management and flood mitigation
• $3.9 billion for capital grants to municipalities

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