Backgrounder - CanNor Funds All-Weather Road Study in the Northwest Territories

The Government of Canada has approved funding for the Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, in partnership with the town of Inuvik, to conduct a $975,000 study to determine the feasibility of constructing an all-weather road between the two communities.

The proposed 140 kilometre road would connect Tuktoyaktuk on the Beaufort Sea to the Dempster Highway at Inuvik, creating a year-round transportation route linking Canada from coast to coast to coast.

The construction of a year-round all-weather road in the NWT will create a permanent Canadian road link from south to north. The Dempster Highway, which begins in Dawson City, Yukon and ends in Inuvik, Northwest Territories, stops just 140 kilometres short of the Canadian Beaufort Sea. The proposed segment of road would link the town of Inuvik to the strategically located hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk, which has a deep working harbour. Tuk’s harbour is up to 30 meters deep and is the only permanent settlement on the Beaufort Sea coast. Its importance continues to grow with economic development opportunities, as northern shipping routes develop.

Project funds will be used for:

• project management;
• preparation of a project description with background environmental reports;
• environmental studies;
• community/stakeholder consultations; and
• a preliminary routing design and report based upon existing work, aerial photography/topography and data collected.

Once the study is complete, the next step will be to prepare regulatory applications and a detailed design. The resulting project work is expected to generate both short-term employment opportunities related to the road construction and long-term opportunities related to the road operation and maintenance. In addition to job creation, it is anticipated that the road will strengthen community ties and encourage investment in the resource-rich region.

Construction of a Tuk-Inuvik Highway is supported by the federal, territorial, municipal and Aboriginal governments. Their continued involvement will be important to the eventual completion of this project. This type of infrastructure will reduce barriers to sustainable economic development and prosperity and improve access to communities and resources.

Funding for the study has been supplied by Canada’s Community Adjustment Fund (CAF), one of a suite of programs offered in the three territories by the newly launched Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor). Canada's Economic Action Plan provides $1 billion nationally over two years for the Community Adjustment Fund to help create jobs and stimulate the economies of small, rural communities. Promoting social and economic development is one of the four pillars of Canada’s Northern Strategy.