Winter weather leads to Perimeter Highway closure

For the first time this winter, the province has shut down the Perimeter Highway due to poor conditions.

The Manitoba Roads X account posted the information at 10 p.m. Wednesday night.

Snow is expected to fall until Thursday night with potentially 15 centimetres expected by the time the system moves through.

The province passed a new bill last year which prohibits driving on closed roads.

Motorists driving light vehicles such as a car or SUV could face a $298 fine while those driving a heavy vehicle could face a $672 fine.

Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure’s Derek Trainer says they’ve been out all day, mostly in western Manitoba so far.

“We’re dealing with snow accumulation, more right now in the west, but that’s going to change as the storm moves from west to east. We have crews all over plowing, clearing off drifts.”