Joint News Release – Tłı̨chǫ Highway to Open on November 30

3 November, 2021

Yellowknife (November 3, 2021) – The Government of the Northwest Territories, the Government of Canada and the Tłı̨chǫ Government are pleased to announce the opening of the Tłı̨chǫ Highway – also known as Highway 9 – on November 30, 2021 at 10 a.m.

To protect our residents during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, the official ribbon-cutting ceremony and community celebrations will be held at a later date.

The 97-kilometre two-lane gravel highway will connect the community of Whatì access road to Highway 3 and the national highway system all year-round. To date, Whatì has been a fly-in community outside of the months it was accessible by winter road.

The Tłı̨chǫ Highway will provide new economic opportunities, increased tourism, and improved accessibility. The new highway will also increase the winter road window-of-access to the communities of Gamètì and Wekweètì.

Quote(s)

“The Tłı̨chǫ All-Season Road is a key piece of infrastructure that will have a long-lasting, positive impact on the lives of Northerners. This investment will help ensure that the people of Whatì have year-round access to essential services and a reduced cost of living. And, by partnering with the private sector, the project was delivered on time and on budget. Congratulations to everyone involved in realizing this important infrastructure project.”
-Michael McLeod, Member of Parliament for the Northwest Territories, on behalf of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities

“The Tłı̨chǫ Highway is an excellent example of Federal, GNWT, Tłı̨chǫ Government working together with industry to provide a very important piece of infrastructure for our communities. The Tłı̨chǫ Highway will continue to provide long term jobs to Tłı̨chǫ people throughout the 25-year maintenance period, and I am pleased that our Tłı̨chǫ partnership North Star Infrastructure completed this job ‘on time and on budget’. This project has been a vision of the Tłı̨chǫ people for over 40 years, and we are proud of what we have all accomplished for the present and future generations.”
- Sonny Zoe, Tłı̨chǫ Acting Grand Chief

“Infrastructure investments are critical to the development of our territory, and the opening of the Tłı̨chǫ Highway is an example of what strong partnerships across government and industry can mean for the Northwest Territories. The Tłı̨chǫ Highway connects residents to new social and employment opportunities, reduces the cost of living in the territory, increases our resiliency and our ability to adapt to the impacts of climate change, and provides better access to natural resources. We look forward to continuing the important work with our federal partners to make critical infrastructure investments in the Northwest Territories that support a prosperous future for Northerners and all Canadians.” -Caroline Cochrane, Premier of the Northwest Territories

“After more than two years of construction work and collaboration with North Star Infrastructure, the Tłı̨chǫ Government and the Federal Government, it is a true pleasure to see this significant project come to completion. Expanding our transportation system will enable residents to connect more easily with their loved ones and will facilitate future economic opportunities. I am looking forward to celebrating with all partners involved in building the Tłı̨chǫ Highway once we can safely do so.” -Diane Archie, Minister of Infrastructure

“The completion of the Tłı̨chǫ Highway is a great example of how the GNWT can work in partnership with Indigenous stakeholders and industry to develop transformative infrastructure. Private-public partnerships (P3) are a proven way to advance the development of major projects while achieving the value for money for the government and taxpayers. I thank all players involved in this project for their hard work and look forward to seeing the social, and economic benefits that the Tłı̨chǫ Highway will bring to the territory in months and years to come -Caroline Wawzonek, Minister of Finance

Quick Facts

The start of the Tłı̨chǫ Highway is located at the intersection of Highway 3 at Km 196.
The GNWT had a Public-Private Partnership (P3) Project Agreement to design, build, finance, operate, and maintain the road.
The value of the contract with North Star Infrastructure over 28 years (2019-2047) is $411.8 million, which include $185 million in capital cost and $226.8 million for operations and maintenance cost.
Government of Canada will fund up to $53.3 million, or 25% of the eligible capital costs approved through the P3 Canada Fund.
Construction started in August 2019.
At the peak of its construction, the project employed 276 workers.