March 15, 2010
Winter Road System Closing as a Result of Melting Conditions
– – –Ashton Urges Federal Government to Step In
OTTAWA--At a meeting here today, Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton urged the federal government and Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) to cover the cost of shipping goods by air due to the closure of Manitoba’s winter road system.
The winter road network in Manitoba will close at midnight tonight, due to warm weather and deteriorating ice conditions. The system closes when it becomes unsafe for travel because ground and ice conditions are no longer able to support all vehicles.
“The winter road system is a vital link to deliver key supplies such as food and fuel to northern communities and this year that link is closing sooner than expected due to the weather,” said Ashton. “Today in Ottawa, I’m raising this very important and serious issue with my federal counterparts as I believe they have a role to play in providing for northern residents.”
Approximately half of the winter road system opened by Feb. 1, while the remainder of the system opened Feb. 12. Normally the system is open for about eight weeks.
The provincial budget to open and maintain the winter road system this season was over $9 million.
The system serves over 30,000 Manitobans in more than 20 communities with no permanent roads. Approximately 2,500 shipments of staple items such as fuel, groceries, construction materials and general freight are transported each year by commercial trucks from the south to the north on this system.
The winter road system is constructed mostly over frozen lakes, rivers and muskeg, however, more than 600 kilometres of the system has been moved off ice surfaces and onto land to further improve safety and reduce environmental risks.
The latest information on road conditions and road safety information can be found www.manitoba.ca or (toll-free) at 1-877-MBRoads.
- 30 -