Clunie Consulting Engineers improves Saskatchewan’s Highway 55
October 25, 2022
By CCE
The project aims to reduce the risk of flooding.
Photo courtesy Government of Saskatchewan.
Clunie Consulting Engineers of Prince Albert and general contractor Venture Construction have completed the improvement of northeast Saskatchewan’s Highway 55.
The $20-million-plus project, funded by Infrastructure Canada and the government of Saskatchewan, involved surfacing nearly 38 km of the highway north of Carrot River, along with 30 new culverts, to help ensure the safe and reliable movement of people and goods between Indigenous communities, including the Red Earth and Shoal Lake Cree Nations, and regional businesses and the forestry industry.
The newly upgraded surface of Highway 55 runs from approximately 1.2 km west of its junction with Highway 123 to about 37 km east of the same junction.
“Highway 55 is an important transportation link for residents and the forestry sector,” says provincial highways minister Jeremy Cockrill, whose government’s 10-year growth plan targets the improvement of 10,000 km of highways. “This project represents the fulfilment of a longstanding need and a commitment to upgrade this critical route to primary weight.”
In the past, during incidences of high precipitation, water encroached the highway’s shoulders. The road has now been widened, which with the additional culverts should improve drainage and reduce the risk of flooding. Upgrading to primary weight will also help ensure the highway’s reliability for the movement of goods.
