LAKELAND - Economic development groups in eastern Alberta are lobbying for a second 24-hour commercial crossing between Canada and the United States, as well as improvements to the north-south highways in the region.
“Right now we only have one 24-hour point of entry at Coutts-Sweet Grass,” said Bob Bezpalko, the executive director of Alberta HUB, one of the three regional economic development alliances that make up the Eastern Alberta Trade Corridor (EATC).
He said having a second 24-hour crossing would have a huge economic benefit for Alberta, and the Wild Horse crossing that connects Havre, Montana with Medicine Hat, Alberta is of particular interest to the EATC.
“We have been working for about 11 years now, the three REDAs [Regional Economic Development Associations] with the Ports to Plains Alliance in the US to ensure this north-south, easy flow of goods and people. Maybe take the pressure off Highway 2. Look at Highway 36 and Highway 41 for infrastructure development. It's the shortest route from Texas to Alberta,” said Bezpalko.
According to the Canada Border Services Agency website, Wild Horse is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for commercial vehicles. Extended evening hours are available for travellers between May 15 and Sept. 30. A spokesperson for CBSA said they are not adjusting hours at this time.
A 2022 white paper by the Alberta Chamber of Commerce called Wild Horse a critical link and argued for expanded hours, making it an automated Port of Entry with “full Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) equivalency,” and improvements to the structures and facilities on the Canadian side.
“It is also a principal choke point, a constraint on north-south traffic and trade, because of limited hours of service and a critical lack of facilities and infrastructure,” reads the report.
The report cites a 2016 survey of trucking companies that found improvements to the crossing would cause between five and 50 per cent of trips by individual carriers to be diverted to Wild Horse.
According to Luke Reimer, a spokesperson for Canada Border Services Agency, Wild Horse is included in the Land Border Crossing Project, which is a multi-phase infrastructure project “set to upgrade or replace ports of entry across Canada.”
“The Wild Horse port of entry will receive a new main building, a covered primary lane, and a detached secondary garage. The port of entry will also be equipped with a bi-level primary inspection booth for passenger and commercial vehicles,” said Reimer.
He said the project is currently in the planning and design phase, and the public will be informed in advance of construction.
According to figures from the Government of Alberta website, overall exports to the US were valued at $162.1 billion in 2024, with petroleum products making up about 82 per cent. Food and agricultural exports were valued at $9.16 billion, chemicals $4.23 billion, plastics and rubber $4.38 billion, wood products $2.99 billion, and “metal, stone, or glass” $1.56 billion.
