Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In follow up to my Member’s statement today, I have some questions for the Minister of Transportation. In this tentative agreement we have with the federal government for the construction of a highway from Inuvik to Tuk, I would like to ask the Minister, in his discussions with the federal government, has the topic of the ongoing cost of the operations and maintenance of that highway ever been raised. Thank you.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Minister of Transportation, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The ongoing maintenance and operation of that highway would be the responsibility of the Government of the Northwest Territories like other highways in the territory. So the answer would be no.
I would like to ask the Minister if he could give us an approximate cost of what it cost to maintain the 2,200 kilometres we currently have of all-weather road in the Northwest Territories, a ballpark figure. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I don’t have that figure and I’d be guessing, but I can perhaps read the Member’s mind. The projections on the maintenance costs of the Inuvik-Tuk highway would be approximately $2 million a year. Thank you.
I was hoping that the Minister would give me an amount so I could figure it out per kilometre. If it was a high amount, I was going to tell him that’s exactly why we can’t afford to spend more. If it was a low amount, I was going to tell him that’s why we can’t afford anything else because we can’t even keep with the roads we’ve got. I was ready for it.
Mr. Speaker, when we built the Deh Cho Bridge, it was self-financing. Does the Minister see any aspect of self-financing from the use of the Inuvik-Tuk highway? Thank you.
I think now is the time for the government to invest in an infrastructure project like the Inuvik-Tuk highway. Now is the right time. We have to think long term. One of the criticisms, when you talk to companies that want to do business here in the Northwest Territories, is the lack of infrastructure. Putting a road between Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk is going to do a tremendous amount to the future economic prosperity of that region. It’s going to grow an economy outside of Yellowknife in a region of our territory that needs that type of activity. It will lead to resource development both onshore and offshore. It will connect those two communities. It will lead to further tourism opportunities in the region. There is a number of great, compelling reasons why the government needs to act now to build the Inuvik-Tuk highway. We need to make those type of decisions now, that are going to be benefitting this territory for generations to come. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.
Thank you for that lovely speech. I’m all for growing the economy outside of Yellowknife, as everybody knows. But I’d like to ask the Minister, how did the traffic projections for this projected road, this planned road, compare with other regions and other all-weather roads throughout the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, for that level of detail, I can get that and commit to get that to the Member. Certainly, this road will be the first one to get to the Arctic Coast in Canada. It’s going to connect the country from coast to coast to coast, and our belief is we are going to see a lot of interested parties that want to drive this road to get to the Arctic Coast. Currently, you have to fly in there or take the ice road in the winter. It’s a great opportunity for the region, a great opportunity for our territory and a great opportunity for this country. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
