Fenn Road Surface Upgrade and Lane re-alignments Contribute to Road Safety
Stettler County, Alberta, September 20, 2013 – Residents and officials gathered today in the County of Stettler to celebrate improvements to an important local road that will bring long-lasting benefits to the community.
"Upgrades to routes like Fenn Road make our transportation network more efficient and reliable,"
said Earl Dreeshen, Member of Parliament for Red Deer, on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs, and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec. "Our Government is proud to have contributed to this important road paving project that will also improve road safety in Stettler County."
"The Alberta government is pleased to have provided the major share of grant funding for this important road construction project,"
said Ric McIver, Minister of Alberta Transportation. "The upgrades to Fenn Road mean that producers and industry will benefit from greater and safer access to resources and markets. In fact, since the road connects with two provincial highways, access is improved for all area residents."
"Fenn Road is used by farmers, business owners and oilfield workers to extract resources from our land and export them to markets around the province,"
said Wayne Nixon, Reeve of the County of Stettler. "Not only is the Fenn Road upgrade good for our economy, but it greatly improves the longevity of the road, making it a transportation route that we can rely on far into the future. We are so proud to have invested in making it safer and more reliable for everyone who uses it."
Fenn Road is critical to the local transportation network, providing access to multiple gravel mines in the area. It is also used by oil field service vehicles and local farmers for the transportation of goods and services, as well as school busses and local commuters.
The County of Stettler used $581,376 of its federal Gas Tax Fund allocation toward the road improvements as well as $2,838,758 in municipal funds. The Government of Alberta contributed $3,460,800 for a total project cost of $6,880,934.
The federal Gas Tax Fund transfer provides long-term funding to municipalities across the country to build and revitalize their local infrastructure. The Government of Canada has invested over $10 billion to date in municipal infrastructure through this program, and passed legislation to make it a permanent transfer of $2 billion per year. In Alberta, the program currently provides over $199.5 million of predictable, long-term funding annually to help municipalities build and revitalize public infrastructure. As part of Economic Action Plan 2013, the Government committed to index the Gas Tax Fund to provide additional funding for communities, starting in 2014.
Canada's Economic Action Plan 2013 is delivering a New Building Canada Plan to build roads, bridges, subways, commuter rail, and other public infrastructure in cooperation with provinces, territories, and municipalities. Thanks to the Government of Canada's leadership and our strong economic and financial fundamentals, the Canadian economy has recovered from the global recession better than most other industrialized countries. Canada has been a leader among G-7 countries throughout the recovery with more than one million net new jobs created since July 2009. The New Building Canada Plan, combined with other federal infrastructure investments, supports Canada's infrastructure advantage, a key enabler of economic growth and job creation.
Alberta Transportation is committed to focusing investment on maintaining safe highways and expanding markets. This work supports the Government of Alberta's priorities of investing in families and communities, and building Alberta through strategic investments in Alberta's core transportation network. This year the government will invest $1.4 billion in Alberta's highway network.
For additional information about federal investments in infrastructure visit Infrastructure Canada or follow us on Twitter at @INFC_eng.
Marie-Josée Paquette (Disponible en français)
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs and
Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
613-943-1838
John Lear
Public Affairs Officer
Alberta Transportation
780-422-7080
Shawna Benson
Director of Communications, Stettler County
403-742-4441
Infrastructure Canada
613-960-9251 or toll-free: 1-877-250-7154
