WATCH ABOVE: During a campaign stop in the Northwest Territories on Friday, Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper said the Conservative government would fund the entire cost of a national highway in the territory if re-elected.
HAY RIVER, N.W.T. – The Conservatives are promising to pay the entire cost of paving a stretch of a scenic highway in the Northwest Territories if they are re-elected on October 19th.
Highway 5 connects Fort Smith to Hay River through Wood Buffalo National Park, but much of it is gravel, making for sometimes difficult driving conditions.
The Conservatives say if re-elected they will provide 14-million dollars to pave a 68-kilometre stretch of the highway, widen some sections and replace drainage culverts.
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Normally, the federal government would only chip in one-third of the construction cost for such a project, with the territorial government and local government splitting the remaining two-thirds.
Small towns in the North could take years to raise the necessary funds, the Conservatives argue, which is why they would cover the full cost.
The announcement comes on Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s first day of campaigning in the North, a region he has focused on during his years in office.
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