Work is set to begin on widening the southwest segment of Edmonton’s ring road.
Transportation Minister Ric McIver and Municipal Affairs Minister Kaycee Madu announce the expansion of the southwest Anthony Henday.
The project involves widening 18 kilometres of Anthony Henday Drive between Calgary Trail and Whitemud Drive from four to six lanes.
This segment of the Henday was originally designed for traffic capacity of 40,000 vehicles each day travelling in both directions. Today, there are about 80,000 vehicles on the southwest Henday daily.
“Edmonton is a growing city that depends on well-developed transportation corridors like the Anthony Henday to support jobs and the economy. Edmontonians know that this section of Anthony Henday Drive has been a pinch point for years, and almost daily we hear about the congestion that families and businesses face along this stretch. This project will alleviate much of that congestion, improve travel times for commuters and increase safety along this critical route. This is another example of our government’s commitment to supporting Edmonton’s economy and developing its transportation infrastructure.”
“This significant and critical investment in Edmonton’s transportation network will pay dividends for generations to come. It will relieve congestion, improve productivity and help Edmontonians get to where they’re going faster. Our government is making Edmonton a priority, and as a resident of southwest Edmonton, I couldn’t be prouder.”
Alberta Transportation anticipates work on the southwest Henday widening project will begin in fall 2019. The project is expected to take about three years to complete and be open to traffic in fall 2022.
Quick facts
Anthony Henday Drive (Highway 216) is an 80-kilometre freeway that encircles Edmonton.
The southwest segment of the Anthony Henday was designed for future widening. The wide outside shoulders will be converted to new lanes in each direction.
Bridge structures were also designed with widening in mind.
Design for the widening project began in 2017.
Construction of the ring road began in 1990 and was officially completed and opened to traffic in October 2016.
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Pushing back the date would preserve the pensions of some of the MPs who could be voted out of office in October 2025.
Aides to the cabinet of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that MPs from the Liberal and New Democratic Party (NDP) did indeed hold closed-door “briefings” to rewrite Canada’s elections laws so that they could push back the date of the next election.
The closed-door talks between the NDP and Liberals confirmed the aides included a revision that would guarantee some of its 28 MPs, including three of Trudeau’s cabinet members, would get a pension.
Allen Sutherland, who serves as the assistant cabinet secretary, testified before the House of Commons affairs committee that the changes to the Elections Act were discussed in the meetings.
“We attended a meeting where the substance of that proposal was discussed,” he said, adding that his “understanding is the briefing was primarily oral.”
According to Sutherland, as reported by Blacklock’s Reporter, it was only NDP and Liberal MPs who attended the secret meetings regarding changes to Canada’s Elections Act via Bill C-65, An Act to Amend the Canada Elections Act before the bill was introduced in March.
As reported by LifeSiteNews before, the Liberals were hoping to delay the 2025 federal election by a few days in what many see as a stunt to secure pensions for MPs who are projected to lose their seats. Approximately 80 MPs would qualify for pensions should they sit as MPs until at least October 27, 2025, which is the newly proposed election date. The election date is currently set for October 20, 2025.
Sutherland noted when asked by Conservative MP Luc Berthold that he recalled little from the meetings, but he did confirm he attended “two meetings of that kind.”
“Didn’t you find it unusual that a discussion about amending the Elections Act included only two political parties and excluded the others?” Berthold asked.
Sutherland responded, “It’s important to understand what my role was in those meetings which was simply to provide background information.”
Berthold then asked, “You nevertheless suggested amendments to the legislation including a change of dates?”
“My role was to provide information,” replied Sutherland, who added he could not provide the exact dates of the meetings.
MPs must serve at least six years to qualify for a pension that pays $77,900 a year. Should an election be called today, many MPs would fall short of reaching the six years, hence Bill C-65 was introduced by the Liberals and NDP.
The Liberals have claimed that pushing back the next election date is not over pensions but due to “trying to observe religious holidays,” as noted by Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen.
“Conservatives voted against this bill,” Berthold said, as they are “confident of winning re-election. We don’t need this change.”
Trudeau’s popularity is at a all-time low, but he has refused to step down as PM, call an early election, or even step aside as Liberal Party leader.
As for the amendments to elections laws, they come after months of polling in favour of the Conservative Party under the leadership of Pierre Poilievre.
A recent poll found that 70 percent of Canadians believe the country is “broken” as Trudeau focuses on less critical issues. Similarly, in January, most Canadians reported that they are worse off financially since Trudeau took office.
Additionally, a January poll showed that 46 percent of Canadians expressed a desire for the federal election to take place sooner rather than the latest mandated date in the fall of 2025.
According to the Secretary of State’s office, Trump leads Harris by 184,935 in a 53%-46% split.
Former President Donald Trump was declared the winner Saturday night in Arizona, marking the final swing state for the Republican to collect in his landslide victory.
Arizona was the seventh and final swing state to be decided, securing Trump 312 Electoral College votes.
All but Coconino, Apache, Santa Cruz, and Pima counties favored Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris. Maricopa County, the source of dozens of electoral challenges including a partisan ballot review of the 2020 election, is currently favoring Trump by more than 78,000 votes. Trump lost the state to President Joe Biden in 2020 by little more than 10,000 votes.
According to the Secretary of State’s office, Trump leads Harris by 184,935 in a 53%-46% split.
Complete election results aren’t expected for at least another week, which is no different from previous cycles. Two-page ballots with dozens of judicial retention races and ballot propositions led to slower results in the days after polls closed. A new election integrity law enacted this year requiring polling stations to count envelopes before they can send off ballots added to the lag in results.
Both the Trump and Harris campaigns made Arizona a priority throughout the election cycle, either hosting rallies themselves or sending big-name surrogates.
Campaign volunteers descended on Maricopa County to join local activists who knocked on thousands of doors in the days before the election. Many residents complained about the barrage of phone calls, texts, emails, and flyers from numerous organizations.
