Alberta government asked to twin highway into northern oilpatch
by The Canadian Press
Cold Lake mayor says government should at least build passing lanes on highway to Edmonton
COLD LAKE, Alta.—The mayor of a northeastern Alberta community is calling on the province to twin another busy highway leading into the bustling energy patch.
Craig Copeland in Cold Lake says increasing traffic is making Highway 28 just as dangerous as the notorious Highway 63, a road with a high collision rate that is currently being twinned.
Copeland says at the very least, the government should build passing lanes and repave sections of the 300 kilometres between Cold Lake and Edmonton.
Alberta Transportation says the province recently pitched in nearly $26-million to twin the highway within Cold Lake’s boundaries, but there are currently no plans to extend the project.
Jeanna Friedley, a department spokeswoman, says Highway 28 carries about 5,000 vehicles a day, but twinning would normally only be looked at when the volume reaches 10,000 to 12,000 a day.
