David Marit, president of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, explains hurdles to timely road and bridge construction.
In rural communities across Canada, rebuilding and repairing rural road and bridge infrastructure is a daunting task.
The need for more government funding and the need to minimize regulatory impediments are two roadblocks.
In land-locked provinces such as Saskatchewan and Alberta, reliable and safe road infrastructure is vital to the survival of commerce and industry. Few transportation options exist besides roads.
Rail line abandonment and elevator consolidation over the past 15 years means thousands more trucks are using our road and highway system. Also, the wear and tear on our roads is greater than ever before, because the allowable weights for trucks have increased due to marketplace demands.
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The industries housed in rural areas generate positive economic benefits to all levels of government through the revenues they generate, the people they employ, the taxes they pay, etc. These industries depend on rural roads for safe and efficient transportation of required materials and in transporting their goods to market.
If rural roads are not maintained and replaced to a safe and reliable standard, businesses and local, provincial and federal governments will feel the negative impacts.
In Saskatchewan alone, it was estimated in 2008 that approximately $567 million over the next 15 years would be required to replace and repair the rural bridge system. A further $225 million per year would be required to maintain and replace rural gravel roads.
Increased truck weights are a factor compounding these costs, because many rural bridges and roads can’t carry these weights and have to be upgraded. This is a significant infrastructure investment and Saskatchewan rural municipalities can’t afford to solely fund it.
All levels of government benefit from rural-based businesses, so all levels of government should share the costs. The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities and the Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties have highlighted this need to provincial and federal government officials.
Another roadblock involves regulations stemming from the Navigable Waters Protection Act. This legislation was enacted more than 120 years ago when waterways were a primary means of transportation across our country.
While transportation methods have evolved, legislation has not. It now impedes transportation by delaying and adding unnecessary costs to road construction projects.
The difficulty stems from how the act defines navigable water. It is generally interpreted as being any body of water on which a canoe can be floated.
Municipalities are frustrated because they are forced to build infrastructure necessary to accommodate public travel on bodies of water that have not seen a canoe in 100 years, if ever.
In many cases, this means they are required to install abnormally large culverts or bridge structures where roads cross water, and they must be large enough for a canoe to pass through. Municipal governments do not have sufficient funds to build infrastructure that long ago ceased to be necessary, but which is still required under the act.
In 2008, SARM and AAMDC were invited to present to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities regarding amendments to the NWPA. One of the most important recommendations was to change the definition of navigable water.
After the review, SARM and AAMDC were encouraged to see changes in the act but disappointed that the definition of navigable water was unchanged.
Both associations advocate that if the definition were modernized, it would still ensure safe and efficient navigable waterways for Canadians. This would, at the same time, allow road construction to proceed in a timely manner without unnecessary additional costs. It could also mean that many of the needed bridge replacements in the future could be done with culverts at a lower cost.
In rural areas, roads are the lifeline for commerce and prosperity. Maintaining a safe and efficient road network is costly, so minimizing any financial and regulatory roadblocks would be of great benefit.
More government funding and less unnecessary regulation will ensure that needed repair and replacement of the rural road network is done in a timely manner without added costs.
This will help ensure that rural businesses stay and prosper so economic spinoffs are realized locally, provincially and federally.
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MICHELLE HOULDEN ILLUSTRATION
