The Alberta government is planning the construction of a major new highway in the province’s north: the Highway 686 widening.
The project would link Fort McMurray and Grande Prairie.
Currently, the shortest route between the two communities passes through Athabasca. It is 750 kilometers long and would take most drivers between seven and eight hours to complete. The new route would reduce the distance by about 100 kilometers.
Improving Highway 686 was part of Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen’s mandate letter in 2023, and it’s no small project.
“Outside of the Calgary and Edmonton bypasses, Alberta has not built a new highway of similar length to the Highway 686 extension for many decades,” Dreeshen said in a statement to CBC.
Now, the province is embarking on a major highway project that will run hundreds of kilometers through remote areas and connect two important regions of the province’s energy industry.
Economic benefits
Fort McMurray has been advocating for the highway for years, primarily because of the economic and safety benefits.
“Community leaders and members have long advocated for a frontage road connecting Fort McMurray,” Wood Buffalo Mayor Sandy Bowman said in a statement to CBC. “It would have enormous benefits and improve community resilience, public safety and economic growth.”
See | The progress made on Highway 686:
A major project is in the works for northern Alberta that would connect Fort McMurray to the rest of the region, including Grande Prairie. CBC reporter Dennis Kovtun in Fort McMurray and CBC reporter Catherine Garrett in Grande Prairie give us the latest on the Highway 686 widening project.
Bryce Kumka, former president of the Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce, believes the highway would “fundamentally change” the community.
He says the highway would position the city as a midpoint between heavy oil production sites in Lloydminster and Grande Prairie and the Peace Country to the west, with its strong agricultural and natural gas industries.
“That interconnection is key to the potential diversification of this region,” Kumka said.
emergency route
The idea of a highway linking Fort McMurray and Peace Country has been discussed for years, but the 2016 Fort McMurray wildlife event renewed interest in the idea. The highway would offer another option for residents to evacuate the community in the event of an emergency.
“I was here in 2016. I witnessed and witnessed the fire, ‘the Beast.’ I was evacuated with my family,” Wood Buffalo County Funky Banjoko told CBC in an interview.
“We need secondary routes for the safety of all residents, including ourselves.”
Emergency services officials in Fort McMurray say the new road would improve community safety.
In a statement to CBC, Wood Buffalo Regional Fire Chief Jody Butz said that currently, “Highway 63 serves as the only exit route for evacuations, which can cause significant delays due to sudden increases in traffic during emergencies.” “.
“From a public safety perspective, having another evacuation route would be a significant benefit to the safety and well-being of the region,” Butz said.
Highway less crucial for Grande Prairie
For Grande Prairie, the Highway 686 extension is a lower priority. It focuses on advocating for the construction of a different path.
“It’s not something that as the city of Grande Prairie we’re leading the conversation,” said Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton.
He said for the City and County of Grande Prairie and the Municipal District of Greenview, the Highway 40X connector is the priority.
“However, when asked, we will be happy to come to the table and talk about Highway 686,” Clayton said.
Dreeshen says the Highway 686 extension will connect northwest and northeast Alberta and provide economic opportunities to several communities and Indigenous groups.
First Nations association ‘in the driver’s seat’
The Alberta government is working on plans for the highway in partnership with Peerless Trout First Nation, Loon River First Nation and Bigstone Cree Nation.
According to the partnership, the project is divided into two phases, with Phase 1 being the paving of an existing 68-kilometer stretch of Highway 686 between Red Earth Creek and Peerless Lake. It is expected to have approximately half of the section paved by the end of this summer.
For Phase 2, the association is also preparing a final report for the province with a proposed route. They hope to deliver it during the summer.
It is comprised of a rights-based review, which looks at treaty rights, an environmental review, a historical review detailing sacred sites, animal crossings or hunting grounds, and a technical review that will look at supplies needed for construction. .
“We want to do this with the province moving forward. We want to work with them,” Chief Gilbert Okemow of Peerless Trout First Nation told CBC.
“We’re in the driver’s seat and this is unique,” Okemow said.
He said other nations are also being consulted.
“With the nations that will be affected, we will certainly let you know. We have been sending letters.”
When the project was announced in April 2023, the province committed $2 million to First Nations for coordination and up to $5 million for pre-engineering work.
The association says consultation and planning efforts do not replace the province’s duty to consult with First Nations. They hope that the report they will deliver will help in this process and guide the province during the negotiations.
Timelines
The association hopes to begin paving work on the first section of the expansion in the summer of 2026.
In his statement, Dreeshen said most of this year will be spent on preliminary engineering activities, including geotechnical work.
The entire project is expected to take five years to complete.
