Overpass construction to start in 2027

CARBERRY — The newly announced overpass north of Carberry will be completed by 2030 and come at a cost of $100 million, Premier Wab Kinew announced Thursday.

Construction on the Trans-Canada and Highway 5 intersection will start in 2027 and take two and a half years to complete, Kinew told a group of about 50 residents at the Carberry Community Memorial Hall.

The crowd gave the premier a standing ovation.

“We heard loud and clear the response,” Kinew said. “Now we’re back here with something that we think fits the bill.”

The decision to build an overpass, initially announced in Tuesday’s throne speech, comes after community pushback earlier this year against the province’s “preferred option” of a restricted crossing U-turn, or RCUT, over fears it would be difficult to navigate for large vehicles and could be confusing.

“Hopefully, this is proof that we listen,” Kinew said.

The province has to finish the design work, which is why construction won’t start until 2027, he said, adding the overpass could be completed as early as 2029, with sections potentially open even before then.

“We’re very, very confident that we can do this in a way that’s going to guarantee safety, guarantee usability, for you, the folks who use it,” Kinew said.

The intersection has been a major focal point of safety concerns since June 2023, when a bus carrying seniors from the Dauphin area to the Sand Hills Casino south of Carberry was hit by a semi-truck. The crash claimed the lives of 17 seniors.

Debra Steen, one of the people who spearheaded the opposition to the RCUT, said she never really thought the community would get an overpass — which was her preferred model — and might only get the median widened.

“This means the world. We’re beyond happy,” Steen told the Sun. “They listened, they heard us and they’re putting in the safest alternative.”

The RCUT was a “recipe for disaster,” she said, adding the overpass is the best way to reduce the chance of an accident caused by human error.

She added that people “wouldn’t even bat an eye” if another overpass was built in or around Winnipeg, but it took all the extra work because this one is in a rural area.

Kinew thanked the crowd and community for the input given during multiple open houses, which at times included community members yelling at provincial staff and consultants who pitched the RCUT model.

Residents also held a rally near the intersection in May and gathered over 2,100 signatures in opposition to the RCUT.

Kinew scrapped the RCUT in July, saying the province would take a fresh look at the intersection.

The RCUT design would have forced drivers going straight or turning left from Highway 5 to turn right before crossing over three lanes and making a U-turn 900 metres later. Drivers turning left from the Trans-Canada would have been able to turn at the intersection. It would have been only the second RCUT built in Canada.

Kinew said at Thursday’s announcement that the overpass and RCUT are very similar in terms of safety, though the RCUT would have been cheaper, with the province estimating the cost at about $20 million.

“When that RCUT was dismissed, or maybe identified by the community as not being the right fit, that left one option in terms of safety,” Kinew said.

Kinew told reporters that an overpass is in a “whole other category of increased safety,” compared to designs like traffic lights or a widened median.

He said he “would love” to see the federal government invest in the project as well.

“No federal commitment today, but the hope is that we’ll be able to work together,” he said.

Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor said details of the project still have to be ironed out. She wasn’t able to answer if the access roads next to the highway would be affected.

The province will buy pieces of land next to the intersection from owners at “fair market value,” Naylor said.

There will also be disruptions during the construction process.

“It’s fair to say there will be some disruption during construction … but it’s a short-term pain for long-term gain.”

Carberry Mayor Ray Muirhead said the entire community is thankful for the overpass.

“I firmly believe this overpass will save lives,” Muirhead said. “This is bigtime for our community.”

Muirhead said he remembers advocating to the province for an overpass back in 1989 when he first became a councillor.

“Fast forward … and here we are.”

Ray Drayson, reeve of the Rural Municipality of North Cypress-Langford, where the intersection is located, called the overpass a “bigtime improvement.”

It also shows that the province took notice of how loud the community was, he said.

“I think they’ve made an excellent decision. They’ve heard the community on the RCUT and cancelled that. They’ve heard the community on this, and they’ve listened,” Drayson said.

Deputy reeve Dallis Olmstead said she’s heard nothing but positive feedback from community members since the announcement of the overpass.

She added that she often uses the intersection to go to Carberry for meetings and for her children’s sports, and this will make a difference for her.

“I will love not having to cross the intersection with your family or a cattle trailer,” Olmstead said. “I avoid the intersection when traffic’s bad. It’ll be wonderful.”

» alambert@brandonsun.com