Mr. Chairman, I would like to make a couple of general comments as a Member, who has the privilege in my constituency to live nearby a highway system. Mr. Chairman, I am concerned about particular budget, even though it has not been noted as a capital priority of the community. I have in the past written to the Government Leader to indicate to her the concerns of the community, the inability and the non-commitment of the Department of Transportation to complete their paving program that they started back in the early 1980s from Sandy Lake to Fort Smith.
I note that in this particular budget, they do have $2.8 million for Highway No. 5 from kilometre zero to 40 for pavement overlay. I know Highway No. 5 is the highway system that we live nearby and this is to do pavement overlay for existing pavement. I am, once again, going to ask the Minister to consider looking at the new area of paving before we expend funding to do overlay on old paving. The old pavement is not in that bad of shape. I drive that highway quite frequently.
It is quite an inconvenience to have to go off the highway after 30 kilometres of Highway No. 5 and go onto a gravel road. There is no initiative from the Department of Transportation to forecast any type of paving for that gravelled area.
I would like to request the Minister, as a Member, to take into serious consideration and to priorize how they expend their funding. I am not asking to do all the paving in one year. There are about 90 kilometres, or I would say about 70 miles. Even if he considered paving that particular portion of our highway over a period of three or four years, we would be able to do it within the capital estimation that is before the House.
I would strongly urge the Minister, before repaving the existing pavement, to consider paving the existing gravelled area. Thank you.