$80,000 TO IDENTIFY PEACE FOREST ROAD IMPROVEMENTS

VICTORIA – Engineering studies will begin to identify road and safety improvements for the Murray River and Sukunka Forest Service roads in the Chetwynd and Tumbler Ridge areas, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell, Community Development Minister Kevin Krueger and Blair Lekstrom, MLA for Peace River South, announced today.

“We have a commitment to improving transportation across the northern region on Forest Service roads that are critical to moving people and goods, and this is the first step in determining what kind of work both these roads need,” says Lekstrom. “I am glad to see that we are moving ahead with this work, which is a necessary first step to delivering the road improvements to support jobs and economic opportunities in the north.”

The Murray River Forest Service Road, south of Tumbler Ridge, provides access to Monkman Provincial Park including Kinuseo Falls within the park. Work on this road consists of an assessment of the existing road condition and potential resurfacing with calcium chloride to reduce dust.

“We recognize the important role many Forest Service roads play as part of infrastructure in rural areas,” said Bell. “We want to ensure that crucial roads to these communities, as well as the parks and wilderness areas around them, receive the maintenance needed to keep them accessible.”

The Sukunka Forest Service Road, south of Chetwynd, provides access to the Hole in the Wall Provincial Park as well as the Brule coal mine, active oil and gas fields and some forestry operations. Work will include completing a road layout and design for potential re-alignment of five kilometres of the Forest Service road to address chronic road maintenance.

“Communities in the Peace River region have told this government they value the economic and social opportunities that come from having a stronger road network. We listened and we are taking action to strengthen the connection between isolated communities and city centres,” said Krueger. “Whether it’s accessing health care, exploring new mineral opportunities or opening new regions to tourism, the benefits of this investment will strengthen the region as a whole.”

British Columbia’s 55,000-kilometre network of Forest Service roads is bigger than the provincial highway system. As first announced by Premier Campbell at the 2008 Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, the Ministry of Forests and Range is providing $20 million to improve travel conditions on Forest Service roads that serve as crucial transportation links to rural communities and recreation sites. The Province of B.C. and the Government of Canada committed on April 7, 2009 to a further $20 million in shared funding for additional Forest Service road upgrades that will be announced in the coming months.

New road maintenance funding is the latest in a series of initiatives to improve safety on Forest Service roads, which include the establishment of radio protocols, speed enforcement through expanded use of radar guns, and the expansion of the Vehicle Identification Plates Program.

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Media contact:	Jennifer McLarty Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592

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