After two years of negotiating with the provincial government it appears the MD of Bonnyville's proposed realignment of Wolf Lake Road won't go ahead as planned.
“We have probably spent $100,000 engineering that road, and over two years trying to get to this point. Now we get here and who kyboshes it? Our own government,” said a frustrated Reeve Ed Rondeau at the May 14 council meeting.
MD council and administration had been planning to take Range Road 73 and extend it north eventually tying it in with a small existing portion of Wolf Lake Road. The new alignment of the road would allow traffic to have a straight drive the majority of the way to Wolf Lake and make it safer for trucks and travelers.
Putting a bump in the road, Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) has mandated that a locked gate be place on the existing Wolf Lake Road so that the new and old roads don't create a loop. The gate was requested to alleviate hunting pressures in the region.
“They want the gate closed, maintained and monitored year-round by the MD,” said Darcy Zelisko, director of transportation and utilities, who mentioned the ESRD was unwilling to consider a seasonal gate.
“They are not willing to move on that point,” said Zelisko. “In that case, it does not suit the needs of industry for that new alignment.”
The MD had been working to create the new alignment because of the condition of the existing Wolf Lake Road. It is full of twists and turns and has several blind corners.
The road will also be seeing an increased level of traffic in the near future, as an additional 80 well sites have been approved for the Wolf Lake region.
“Safety is a huge issue in this thing. We would have had a straight road almost all of the way to Wolf Lake, a wider road, a much better road” said Rondeau. “Even if we upgrade that road it will never be anywhere near as safe as what the new alignment would have been.”
Council and administration were clearly frustrated at the apparent lack of flexibility shown from the ESRD.
“If (the government) didn't approve all of the well sites up there we wouldn't need to create the (new) road. They are creating their own problem,” said Zelisko.
The MD is planning to meet with industry representatives this week to discuss plans for the road.
