Kinew announces $115M for highway upgrades

GLENBORO — In front of a crowd of about 50 people from the Glenboro area, Premier Wab Kinew announced Friday he was providing $115 million to make their highways safer.

The improvements will include upgrading three highways in and around the community — Highways 2, 5 and 34 — and replacing two bridges, including one that leads to Spruce Woods Provincial Park.

Kinew made the announcement beside Highway 2 on the outskirts of Glenboro as traffic rumbled past.

“This is all about making sure that Manitobans, especially folks who live in rural communities, have a good quality of life, are safe as you lead those good lives and are proud of this province that we all love so much,” Kinew said during a news conference.

“We know in rural Manitoba, people often spend a lot of time on the road, and I can tell you from first-hand experience that some of the roads nearby here could use some more attention.”

One of the bridges that will be replaced goes over the Assiniboine River on Highway 34 north of Holland.

The other bridge is on Highway 5 north of Glenboro, on the way to Spruce Woods Provincial Park. Additional rehabilitation work will also be conducted on a bridge over the Souris River on Highway 2, west of Wawanesa.

The specific projects include repairing and resurfacing 15 kilometers of Highway 5 north of Highway 2 that will eventually lift restrictions and increase allowable axle weights during the spring thaw.

Standing beside Kinew during the announcement, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor said the province’s investment will improve road safety and drive economic growth to local communities.

“Agriculture is absolutely the backbone of Manitoba’s economy, and local agriculture producers have faced significant hardship due to poor road conditions and spring road restrictions,” Naylor said.

“I recognize the importance of Highway 2 to this community, and this investment reflects the priorities of our government, upgrading routes that benefit residents, farmers, businesses and even tourists who come to enjoy Manitoba’s natural attractions.”

Additional work includes grading repairs on Highway 34, with a temporary guardrail and reduced speed limit.

Naylor said the previous Progressive Conservative government was at fault for neglecting the roadways, adding it’s the NDP that is taking action to address the long overdue infrastructure needs.

Contacted after the announcement, PC transportation and infrastructure critic Konrad Narth said he disagreed with Naylor’s statement, insisting his party had the projects in its five-year capital operating plan.

Friday’s announcement was a political ploy, he said.

“These are rehashed PC plans from 2023, even earlier than that. So it has nothing to do with rebuilding the infrastructure that we, Manitobans, and definitely Westman residents, have identified as important. But instead, it’s a grasp at trying to buy votes in the Spruce Woods constituency. They’re using it as a promise to hopefully gain support,” Narth told the Sun.

“And I think the people of the Westman region, especially those of the Spruce Woods constituency, they can see through it, and they expect better from their government.”

A new surface has already been laid down on Highway 2 through Glenboro to the intersection of Highway 5, which was “welcome work,” said Municipality of Glenboro-South Cypress Mayor Charles Radford.

“These local highways are vital routes for our residents and ratepayers, for farmers to access their fields and operations, consumers to access our business community and for tourists who come to enjoy some of the most beautiful natural attractions in Manitoba,” Radford said in a news release.

Rehabilitation on Highway 5 is scheduled to start this winter and expected to be completed by the fall of 2027. Grading repairs on Highway 34 will begin this fall, with a target completion date of fall 2026.

The bridge over the Assiniboine River on Highway 34 is slated to be finished by this summer, while the work on the bridge to Spruce Woods is expected to start this fall and be completed by late fall of 2027.

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