Photo: Shaun Penner / EverythingGP staff

By Shaun Penner

Highway 40X East

County hoping to secure alignment for potential Highway 40X East connector

Oct 7, 2021 | 12:00 PM

County of Grande Prairie Council has directed administration to re-engage with Alberta Transportation in efforts to proactively protect land which would be needed for a possible future connection between Highway 40 and Highway 43 East, known as Highway 40X East.

Discussions on such a project began in 2016, which would see a connection from near Resources Road at Highway 668, heading northeast to connect with Highway 43 near Ritchie Bros. at Range Road 51.

Reeve Leanne Beaupre says with a high level study completed a few years back and a location where a bridge would potentially cross Bear Creek being identified, council is hoping to bring the conversation with the province back to the forefront to ensure needed lands are in place, should this project ever get the green light.

“We are just wanting to make sure we can continue with the province on looking for an alignment, so that people, whether they own the property themselves or whether it’s on Crown Land and there is future development, we want to make sure we protect those corridors for roads in the future so that there are not any competing uses in the area.”

A potential alignment for the proposed Highway 40X East connector (Photo: County of Grande Prairie)

Meaningful Mementos

Remembering Someone You've Lost at Christmas

Dec 03, 2024

Seasonal Sorrow

How Do You Get Through The Holidays When You're Grieving?

Nov 01, 2024

Upcoming Events at Oliver's

Grief & Loss and Estate Planning Seminars

Oct 02, 2024

Beaupre says conversations have occurred with both the previous NDP government and the UCP government about the project, however little talk has been had recently.

“We have not had any further conversation with the government, so we would just like to re-engage with them in that conversation, because we want to make sure that the best interests of the people are served, as well as the ratepayers,” said Beaupre. “Because as things develop, we don’t want there to be any competing uses if there is a road alignment that has been chosen.”

“It’s easier to protect it now for future investment and roads than it is to come back in the future and try and buy enough land to be able to put a road in from that side of Highway 40 going east.”

This connector is an additional phase to a proposed project to the west, which would look to connect Highway 40 going northwest to Highway 43 West at Richmond Hill.

READ MORE: County of Grande Prairie seeking to add Highway 40X as an economic stimulus project

“The one on the west is done (the alignment) and it’s been gazetted, and the province has approved the routing,” Beaupre said. “This would be to the east.”

No timelines are known at this time for if and when either project could go forward.