I have one more motion, Mr. Chairman. I move that the committee recommends that the Financial Management Board provide substantiation for any changes over $100,000 in planned expenditures. The committee further recommends that these substantiations be contained in the five year capital forecast 1995-96 to 1999-2000 document.

Question.

That concludes my general comments, Mr. Chairman.

Agreed.

---Agreed

Agreed.

---Agreed

Yes. Do you want me to do them? Okay. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to present the committee with the Department of Transportation's proposed capital budget for 1994-95. Let me say at the outset that I believe transportation is a major factor in the economic well-being of all our citizens.

The high cost of transportation, especially in off-highway communities, makes a significant contribution to high living costs and the high costs of delivering a whole range of government programs and services. Transportation cost is also a major factor in frustrating a variety of potential economic developments.

Most of our communities do not have access to the highway network and this will not change in the foreseeable future. Many do not have adequate airports. Most do not have access to marine facilities needed to support resource harvesting and resupply. Others require local roads to access nearby resources and recreation and tourism attractions.

We also have an obligation to improve the safety of our airports, roads and harbours as well as the skills and awareness of those using them.

We have tried to address these issues in developing our capital plan. However, the list of needs for improving and expanding our transportation facilities is virtually endless. We would like to invest more but, as you know, there are other priorities and our fiscal capacity is limited. We simply can not do it all.

On the positive side, we have had some success in seeking additional resources through program transfers and cost-sharing agreements with Canada. We will be pursuing more of these to help address the shortfall in addressing needs.

This year, we have undertaken an update of the transportation strategy, first released in 1990. This document will be available in the near future. I have also identified, from the strategy update, the major priorities which I, as Minister, intend to pursue over the next few months and, hopefully, two years. I intend to table this transportation agenda before the end of this session. It will identify those priorities which are not being addressed within our current plans and outline plans for finding the resources necessary to do them.

The priorities we intend to pursue are as follows: to find the resources necessary to accelerate our highway upgrading program.

---Applause

Thank you. To negotiate with the federal government to continue the Mackenzie Highway extension.

---Applause

To coordinate federal, territorial and private sector investment in constructing a transportation corridor to the Arctic Coast. Do I hear you Kelvin? To increase funding for community local access roads.

---Applause

God, I can't take it.

---Laughter

To negotiate with the federal government for funding to build and upgrade airports to meet community needs. The hour is late. To improve the safety and reliability of air navigation systems; to increase spending on local marine facilities; to improve marine resupply systems and reduce costs; to increase efforts in transportation safety and, more importantly, to increase the local employment and business benefits resulting from transportation expenditures.

In setting priorities and developing the plan before you, we have listened to the advice of MLAs and community leaders. Within our funding ability, we will attempt to fulfil our obligations and satisfy the highest priorities.

With your indulgence, Mr. Chairman, I would like to draw your attention to a few general points concerning this plan. First, the capital base of the Department of Transportation is largely built on a succession of program transfers from Canada. There have been three capital base transfers related to the highway system, totalling about $24 million in today's dollars. A $3 million base transfer was also made in conjunction with the airports transfer.

Secondly, this government has a major investment in highway facilities in the west. This investment will continue to place considerable demands on our resources for maintenance, as well as capital rehabilitation and upgrading. Highways are, therefore, the largest component of our capital program.

However, because our off-highway communities will continue to rely on marine and air transportation, we must accord a higher priority to providing these communities with adequate airports and marine facilities.

For this reason, two recent capital cost-sharing agreements with Transport Canada have specifically targeted air and marine facilities for off highway communities. The first agreement runs from 1990 to 1995 and is providing a total of $8 million additional federal dollars for airport upgrading. The second runs from 1993 to 1997 and is providing $10 million new federal dollars for airport and marine facility upgrading.

Finally, Mr. Chairman, there have been numerous requests for local community access roads and marine facilities. These facilities are required to support resource harvesting, tourism, recreation and cultural pursuits. I am attempting to respond to this need by quadrupling the annual capital allocated to local community access roads from $250,000 in 1993-94, to $650,000 in 1994-95, and to $1 million by 1996-97.

I also plan to double the annual budget for community wharves, from about $1 million in 1993 to $1.5 million in 1994 and $2 million per year commencing in 1995. This is in addition to the federal cost-sharing agreement I mentioned earlier.

I believe this proposed capital plan represents a good balance in responding to the needs within the resources available. I hope you all will find it worthy of your support. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. During the review of the 1994 capital forecasts, the Department of Transportation provided the committee with a full briefing on the highway program. The briefing covered the maintenance, reconstruction and paving of highways in the western Arctic and included an inventory of highways in the territories, maps showing type and conditions of highways, highway usage

statistics, historic expenditure on highways, highway safety standards, highway program priorities and the overall capital program.

The committee wishes to acknowledge the progress achieved by the department. For example, today 55 per cent of NWT highways meet design standards that include: acceptable road widths; surface conditions; curbs; passing opportunities; and sight distances. The comparable condition for 1988 is 40 per cent. In 1988, 72 per cent of territorial highways were untreated gravel. Today, 22 per cent of the highway system is paved and 47 per cent is dusted, treated gravel.

The short-term priorities of the department are: reconstruction and paving of highway 3; Fort Providence junction to Yellowknife;...

---Applause

...reconstruction of highway 8; local access roads; Rae Edzo. In broad terms, the committee agrees with the department's rationale for road construction and paving and understands that cost considerations may dictate the scheduling and proportions of the programs. However, Members are concerned that the sheer scale of the undertaking on highway 3 may in fact be removing dollars from other important projects, in particular, reconstruction of the Dempster Highway.

This factor may also be creating a ten to 15 year deferral of work on less-travelled portions of the highway system.

Therefore, Mr. Chairman, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Transportation reassess its short-term priorities. The objective of the reassessment is to ensure that the maximum number of residents of the Northwest Territories benefit from the expenditure of capital dollars on the highway program.

The committee further recommends that the four highways listed below be reconsidered in conjunction with this objective. Reconsideration should involve the movement of capital funds in the 1994-95 fiscal year for the reconstruction and/or paving of the following highways: highway 5, Fort Smith; highway 8, Dempster; highway 6, Fort Resolution; and highway 1, Fort Simpson.

Thank you. Your motion is in order. To the motion. Mr. Gargan.

Mr. Chairman, with regard to the motion. I was just wondering whether the committee has based its recommendation on any kind of statistics? My concern is that I don't know what the motion was based on. I could see myself supporting something like this is, if it is justified. In Fort Providence, every year during the summer months there are about 6,400 vehicles that cross in a three month span. Once the winter crossing is open, the amount of traffic is also great. I would like to know what the statistics are for the Liard crossing and the Arctic Red crossing that would justify this motion. And, of course, Mr. Chairman, the other thing is whether the committee looked at the age of the highways.

The first highway ever built was from the border to Hay River; two, between Enterprise and Yellowknife; three, was to Fort Smith; fourth, was to Simpson; five, the Dempster; and, the very last one is the one to Fort Wrigley. We should be able to use that as a basis. The priorities that we set have to be based on the volume of traffic, the age of the roads and the safety factors. I don't mind supporting a motion like this if the whole purpose is they are undergraded roads and the safety conditions are important. At the same time, I don't think we should be taking away from other projects that have already started during the 11th Assembly.

Member for Thebacha.

Mr. Chairman, the intent of this motion was to ensure that all highways are being addressed. As Mr. Gargan said, the second highway built was from Hay River to Yellowknife. The first highway being from the border to Hay River and then to Fort Smith. The committee was concerned that funding is being spent not only for initial paving, but for repaving when there are many highways in the Northwest Territories that haven't even received initial paving.

We recognize that our job is to be guided by the principle, to ensure equity, fairness and universality of benefits to all residents in the territories. I certainly was concerned, as a Member, that there was no equity and fairness and universality of benefits. In this particular budget, there wasn't any money whatsoever for addressing highway 5, for example. In order to ensure that all highways are looked at in a fair manner, committee Members felt the need to look at moving some capital dollars in the 1994-95 budget to address highways which some Minister had started way back in 1986 and left. Such highways were never dealt with on a continual basis.

We are asking Members to support the motion to ensure that funding allocated through the Department of Transportation is done so in a fair manner. Thank you.

Thank you. To the motion. Mr. Koe.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will be supporting this motion on the basis that this committee reviewed highway safety and the overall capital plan usage. I'm very concerned about the amount of money that has been allocated for the Dempster Highway, highway 8. Based on the information that was provided to Members during the briefing on the highway system, highway 8, in terms of statistics and standards that are required for highways -- and I'm talking about the width -- is considerably undersized in that regard. Also, there's the amount of dust on the Dempster, the grade and number of turns. There's also concern about the conditions of the various culverts that are in the Dempster Highway. I get concerned when money, at one time allocated for highways such as highway 8, are now not recorded in the budget book. There's $1 million for reconstruction this year and there's no money in this document for future years. I get concerned when I see information that is maybe, missing. I will be supporting this motion and hope that the department sees it in their wisdom to allocate appropriate funds to do a good job. Especially in an area that has very little economic base, and is in need of jobs. Highway construction provides a lot of jobs. Thank you.

Thank you. To the motion. Mr. Todd.

Thank you. I think it's important to clarify that Mr. Koe is well aware that there's $13.4 million over the next five years for investment in the Dempster Highway. So, let's get that clear because he implied that there wasn't. He's fully aware, being at the Standing Committee on Finance meetings that there's $13.4 million in the budget, for the record, over the next five years. Thank you.