REGINA – A photo of a highway in rough shape posted to the Saskatchewan government’s Facebook page is garnering a lot of attention.
The photo is of Highway 220 in the RM of McKillop which currently looks more like a gravel road.
Both Highway 220 and Highway 322 have been shut down temporarily to everyone but local traffic due to the deteriorating conditions.
The area’s reeve, Gary Gilbert, said the closures pose a safety concern for emergency personnel who would be forced to take a grid road in the case of an emergency.
“I would call (Highway 220) horrible. I would call it non-drivable,” he explained. “If you have a half-ton truck you’ll make it through, but you’ll have trouble.”
Residents also add that the conditions and closures are a hassle.
“I live six miles from here,” said resident Don Uhl. “The other day I had to put on 27 miles just getting home.”
The two highways are also the main access points to Rowan’s Ravine Provincial Park.
Roughly 600 vehicles a weekend visit the park in the summer and Gilbert fears that the road conditions will have an impact on tourism and keep visitors from coming back.
“There are a lot of tourists that come up here,” he said. “Try imaging a guy pulling a trailer through this.”
Provincial construction crews are leveling the roads to keep them as drivable as possible for locals.
However, highway like Highway 220 and Highway 322 only carry about six percent of Saskatchewan’s traffic and fall on a lower level of priority.
Joel Cherry with the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure said temporary repairs will take place on the road, but crews are waiting for a break in the weather.
“The roads are just badly saturated with water and at this point our own heavier maintenance vehicles can’t operate on them.”
Both highways have been nominated in the CAA’s Worst Roads of 2015 campaign.
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