Mr. Speaker, I have a return to written question asked by Mr. Hawkins on February 7, 2007, regarding the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk all-weather road.
As far back as the release of the 1990 Transportation Strategy, the construction of the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk all-weather road has been a priority of the department. This was reiterated in the 1995 Transportation Strategy update and in the 2000 Highway Strategy, Investing in Roads for People and the Economy. It should be noted that the construction of new roads in the NWT is still the responsibility of the federal government.
In 1999, the Department of Transportation undertook the Highway Strategy initiative. This initiative dedicated resources for background planning studies on new roads, including the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk road. Studies related to engineering, economics, environment and land issues were completed.
In March 2001, the department made a submission to DIAND under the regional partnerships fund for the construction of a 22-kilometre access road from Tuktoyaktuk to gravel source 177. The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation also indicated that they would be willing to contribute $1 million to the project. However, the federal government would not commit to the significant financial investment required to fund the project.
Since 2002, the Government of the Northwest Territories has released three funding proposals to the federal government for investment in transportation infrastructure: Corridors for Canada, Corridors for Canada II: Building on our Success, and Connecting Canada: Coast to Coast to Coast. Construction of the 22-kilometre access road from Tuktoyaktuk south to area gas deposits and gravel source 177, as the first phase of a road from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk, was included in both Corridors for Canada documents. Connecting Canada included the all-weather road from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk, in support of a national sovereignty, oil and gas development and other economic opportunities. All three proposals are available on the Department of Transportation's website.
As part of the department's overall assessment of the construction of the Mackenzie gas project and post-construction era, the need for an Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk all-weather road has been proposed as one of the legacy infrastructure projects that the proponent should consider.