January 11, 2017 – Whatì, Northwest Territories - Today, Member of Parliament for the Northwest Territories, Michael McLeod, on behalf of the Honourable Amarjeet Sohi, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, the Honourable Bob McLeod, Premier of the Northwest Territories, the Honourable Wally Schumann, Northwest Territories Minister of Transportation and the Honourable Robert C. McLeod, Northwest Territories Minister of Finance, along with Tłįchǫ Grand Chief Eddie Erasmus, announced conditional approval of federal funding for the construction of the All-Season Road.
The federal government will provide up to 25 per cent of eligible project costs through the P3 Canada Fund.
The procurement of the Tłįchǫ All-Season Road through a Public-Private Partnership will start with the release of the Request for Qualifications in February 2017.
This project is currently undergoing an environmental assessment led by the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board. Confirmation that funding is now available will inform the environmental assessment process in terms of possible timing of construction.
The Tłįchǫ All-Season Road will consist of approximately 97 kilometres of a new 2 lane road to the community of Whatì, including four new bridges and one large arched culvert.
Currently served by a winter ice road, the Tłįchǫ region has overland access to the Yellowknife region and southern Canada for only three months of the year. During the remaining months, food and supplies are flown in at significant costs, with resulting food prices often 50% higher than in Yellowknife.
The existing winter road is challenged each year by changing lake ice and overland section conditions, resulting from significant variations in winter air temperatures and snowfall. Given the effects of climate change, efforts to improve the winter road system
have been a long standing priority for the Government of the Northwest Territories and the local communities.
Read more on tlicho.ca/news/tlicho-all-season-road-achieves-important-milestone
