Calgary’s Ring Road southwest construction kicks off

Members of federal, provincial and municipal governments and First Nations representatives were on hand for the official start of construction on the southwest section of the Calgary Ring Road, and a portion of the road that has been renamed: “Tsuut’ina Trail”.

This ceremony represents the beginning of one of two remaining sections of the Calgary Ring Road project. Major construction got underway in 2017 and the project is expected to be substantially complete and open to traffic in 2021. The Government of Canada will be contributing more than $350 million to this project with the Province of Alberta contributing the balance of the funding.

The total value of the Southwest Calgary Ring Road (SWCRR) is $2.2 billion. The SWCRR project includes approximately 31 kilometres of new six and eight-lane divided highway with 14 interchanges, one road flyover, one railway crossing (flyover), 47 bridges, two bridge rehabilitations, three river crossings, and two river realignments (Elbow River and Fish Creek).

Alberta Transportation has contracted Mountain View Partners to design, construct and maintain and operate the road for 30 years. Mountain View Partners was formed by Meridiam Infrastructure North America Corp., Kiewit Canada Development Corp, Connor, Clark & Lunn GVest Traditional Infrastructure Limited Partnership and Ledcor Developments Ltd.  The design and construction of the project will be subcontracted to KGL Contractors, a construction partnership made up of Kiewit Management Co., Graham Infrastructure and Ledcor Group of Companies.  The operations and maintenance will be subcontracted to Alberta Highways Services Ltd.

“Our government is proud to invest in the critical Southwest Calgary Ring Road project which will connect communities, enhance access to markets and services and make life better for Albertans, and we are extremely proud and honoured to name this section of the Southwest Calgary Ring Road, Tsuut’ina Trail, in honour of our partnership with the Tsuut’ina Nation and the land on which it stands,” said Brian Mason, minister of infrastructure and minister of transportation in Alberta.

“This is more than the naming of a road. This will reflect in perpetuity how the paths of Tsuut’ina and Calgarians run together and that our past and futures are intertwined,” said Lee Crowchild, Chief of the Tsuut’ina Nation.

Tsuut’ina Trail extends roughly 10 kilometres through former Tsuut’ina land, between Fish Creek and Glenmore Trail.

EDIT: On June 22, 2016, Mountain View Partners was selected as the preferred proponent. The project reached financial close on September 13, 2016. Mountain View Partners signed a 35-year contract with the province of Alberta to design, build, operate, and partially finance the Southwest Calgary Ring Road. The Design-Build-Finance- Operate (DBFO) contract is worth CAD$1.42 billion in 2016 dollars, to be paid over the 35-year term of the contract.

Mountain View Partners was formed by Meridiam Infrastructure North America Corp., Kiewit Canada Development Corp, Connor, Clark & Lunn GVest Traditional Infrastructure Limited Partnership and Ledcor Developments Ltd.

The design and construction of the project will be subcontracted to KGL Contractors, a construction partnership made up of Kiewit Management Co., Graham Infrastructure and Ledcor Group of Companies.  The operations and maintenance will be subcontracted to Alberta Highways Services Ltd.

Mountain View Partners

Project Lead: Meridiam Infrastructure North America Fund II, as managed by Meridiam Infrastructure North America Corp.

Financing Lead: Meridiam Infrastructure North America Fund II, as managed by Meridiam Infrastructure North America Corp.

Design-Construction Lead: Kiewit Management Co.

Operation and Maintenance Lead: Alberta Highway Services Ltd.