CALGARY, AB: Today’s ring road announcement failed to provide any details for Calgarians and the people of southern Alberta on when the final leg of the ring road on the west end will be completed, the Wildrose Official Opposition said.
This afternoon, the government announced the long expected construction of the southwest portion of the Calgary ring road will go ahead, but provided no costs for the project, or an update on when the final west leg will be completed between Sarcee Trail and the Trans-Canada Highway.
“Drivers in our cities need relief. As Calgarians know all too well, completion of the last section of the ring road is necessary to reduce strain and backlog on city streets,” Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said. “I am pleased to see that the long-overdue process to complete the southwest portion of the ring road is going forward, but dead-ending the road just doesn’t make sense.”
Completion of the Calgary ring road was a key component of the Wildrose platform, and was highlighted as a top infrastructure priority.
Wildrose Shadow Transportation Minister Glenn van Dijken said a timeline is needed to ensure the final leg of the project is built in a timely manner.
“It’s a bit disingenuous to talk about how much this ring road will help traffic around Calgary when we still have no idea when they are actually going to finish it,” van Dijken said. “The PCs didn’t plan to finish the final leg of the ring road for at least another decade, and the NDP are now following suit.”