Okay. The results of the recorded vote on the motion are eight in favour, two opposed, and seven abstentions. The motion is carried.

Committee motion carried.

All right; next on my list is Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to ask several questions about the department here. The first has to do with the safety of the winter roads in terms of the region I represent, Sahtu region.

The winter roads have seen an increase in traffic and activity. We also have seen a number of projects happen that would improve and enhance the quality of our roads. I would like to see if there are going to be continued road safety signs; realigning the roads from the curbs, from the hills; and what this department proposes to do with the amount of traffic. We saw last year in Sahtu heavy equipment passing with rigs on them, chains on the tires. Traffic is coming all hours of the night. People in my region take advantage of the winter roads, as they open sometimes in January, sometimes a little later. They close in March, and that window of opportunity closes for them.

There are lots of concerns coming from my region about the big rigs coming in. Sometimes they get quite scared when they travel. Usually the best time for travelling on the Mackenzie Valley winter road is at nighttime, because you can see the lights; that’s the only way they know that other vehicles being used by oil companies are on the road.

I’d ask the department: in terms of enhancing the quality or safety of our roads what is the department proposing to do on these winter roads up in the Sahtu region?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Neudorf.

We certainly look forward to the department’s initiatives with the community; safety initiatives they could also implement from the community in terms of what safety initiatives could be undertaken. The community has some fairly good ideas about what should be done and what can be done. Some of the signs on the Mackenzie Valley road up in my region are on trees. Sometimes those signs fall down for whatever reason. We want to look at some of those signs in terms of safety measures.

The deputy minister alluded to the bridge program, and we certainly appreciate the bridge program coming to our region. There’s one bridge that’s between Fort Good Hope and Norman Wells called the Oscar Creek Bridge. It’s just sitting there as a monument, and people are wondering when the department will put in the approaches to it. It’s been there for a couple of years now. It’s very dangerous and hazardous.

When will the department, in terms of its priorities on bridges, fix this bridge? They’re going to start on other bridges, but this bridge has been in the spot, sitting there; it’s an eyesore. Actually, it’s starting to become a joke to my people of the Sahtu region, because it’s not doing anything. If this bridge was down somewhere in the south part of the territory, it would be done just like that. The priority is the Oscar Creek Bridge.

There are other bridges, I know, from Big Smith, Little Smith — bridges that need to be up and running. I’d ask the deputy or the Minister: when will we see the Oscar Creek Bridge completed, rather than just have a monument there?

We’ve been hearing “very shortly” for a bit here. I’m not too sure what the definition of the deputy’s “very shortly” is in terms of the time frame. Can we look at something in terms of having the commitment that this bridge will be done and finished? It’s sitting high and dry with no approaches. My people want to know when this bridge will be completed. It’s sitting there. It’s an embarrassment for the government. When will this bridge be done? You have the dollars. I’d like to ask the deputy to expand a little more on this “very shortly” answer.

There are lots of bridges, and people are very happy that the Blackwater bridge is being looked at. But I’m saying this bridge has been sitting there for about two years. It’s been sitting there. How long does it take an engineer to say, “We want to build approaches on both ends to complete it”? I don’t want to get into too much detail on the Oscar Creek Bridge in terms of the work that needs to get done there, but by God, you have to have that work done in the next couple of months. It’s been sitting there for two years.

Blackwater is not even on the banks of the Blackwater River, yet now let’s focus on Blackwater bridge, let alone Bosworth or Bear River bridges.

There are investments going into the Sahtu. There are millions of dollars going into the Sahtu oil and gas, and our return on investment is not too bad. But they could stay longer if they had those bridges there. They have the Blackwater bridge in there. Bosworth, I understand, is a temporary bridge. Oscar is just sitting there. They also got the Big Smith.

We have major investments going into the Sahtu region for oil and gas, mining exploration. We’d better have a good return on them for our people, because our roads are only open from January to the end of March. That’s it. Our cost of living is high. People who want to go out and take advantage of the winter roads to have a vacation, drive their vehicles down, are very limited compared to other regions that have all weather roads. Our people are starting to demand that these priorities take place in our region. Right now we don’t have that opportunity. We use the highway as the Mackenzie River.

When I go back home, they say, “Well, the other MLAs and other regions have roads. They have opportunities.” People in Délînê have to cross the Bear River Lake. They have to wait, and now that climate change is taking effect, they have to wait longer. They have companies in Délînê that want to do work. We can’t open the Bear River Lake ice crossing; it’s too warm. They’re losing millions, thousands of dollars.

That’s why I’m asking this department to put some emphasis on the region that doesn’t have all weather access roads. Put in a little higher priority. Our food might go down. That’s what I want to ask. I think I’m making more of a statement, Mr. Chairman, and I’m asking the department to have some leniency, some goodness in their hearts to look at people who live in the Sahtu who have these types of challenges before them.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. After that impassioned plea I’ll ask Minister Michael McLeod if he would care to respond to that specific request.

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Mr. Michael McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to say that there has been some significant focus in the area of the Sahtu, the Member’s riding, for some time now and for all the reasons that he’s listed, including the short time frame where the communities can access the south for shopping or visiting or things of a personal nature. There’s also the consideration among the communities in the Sahtu to be able to have the communities

connected during the winter months so they can travel back and forth.

We have been focusing some considerable investment through the strategic infrastructure initiatives. We’ve managed to target many bridges, along with grade work, in the Sahtu. We would like to have all 42 bridges that we have identified over the years as immediate done over the next while. We indicated, as the deputy has indicated, in the very near future, because in some of the cases we don’t have all the resources identified.

We have targeted over the next while two bridges we’d like to get done, and that’s Jackfish Creek and Bosworth Creek. Oscar Creek is also something that is part of what’s being considered. If the Member feels we should focus on Oscar Creek as a priority, we’d certainly consider that. There is still some work to be done, as the deputy has indicated, but we’d gladly sit down with the Member to have that discussion on where the priorities for investment in the Sahtu are. We don’t have the resources to do all the projects. There are some dollars that may be available down the road through the Building Canada Fund, but we’ve indicated to the Members that we’d like to have that discussion before we make any commitments.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Next on my list is Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. First of all, looking at this capital plan, I’d like to thank the Department of Transportation for putting some money into Highway No. 6. I had an opportunity to discuss this budget, or the plan to put this money in, with the community of Fort Resolution. Highway No. 6 is the highway that goes from Hay River into Fort Resolution. It’s not right from Hay River but from what’s referred to as the Big Buffalo River camp into Fort Resolution, 90 kilometres of highway. For the most part, about 70 kilometres of this highway is in fairly decent shape. It’s not in good shape, but it’s in decent shape. The majority of this work I’d like to have the department look at, just concentrating on 17 kilometres of highway that goes from the camp at Little Buffalo River into Fort Resolution.

My understanding from talking to some of the people who live in the community is that that highway was originally put in as a temporary road. I was told it was just a road that was put in to originally make the road passable for regular traffic, but it was always the intention to actually get the road up to specs. So this is our first opportunity since then to get that portion of the road up to specs.

I think I did make a Member’s statement asking the Minister to take a look at getting the project started as quickly as possible. The budget goes back to

this current fiscal year, so there should be nothing impeding the department from starting the project as soon as possible. I’m hoping I can get an opportunity. I do believe the department has then given some direction to travelling to the community with me to take a look at this road. I’m hoping that it gets down to a point where we’re focusing on the worst areas of the highway.

In addition to that, I have a question for the Minister. The various highway chipseal overlay program has probably, aside from the bridge work, one of the larger budgets in the Department of Transportation plan over the length of the term of this government. I was wondering if the department or the Minister — whichever, the infrastructure Minister or the Minister of DOT — could advise me if the various highway chipseal overlay program is scheduled to go into Highway No. 6 at this time. That’s my question for now. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Mr. Neudorf.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. There is no question, so we’ll move to the next person on the list. Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I’d like to ask the Minister of Transportation if he can give me an update in regard to the Building Canada Fund and how community projects can be added to that fund. I know of previous commitments from previous Ministers to looking at the Aklavik access road to the gravel source. I know there was a meeting last week. I’m wondering about the possibility of getting an update on what the status of that is. What type of a timeframe are we looking at to basically develop a proposal, submit it and see if we can access the funds from the Building Canada Fund to do that project, similar to the project in Tuk?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would refer that question to Minister Michael McLeod.