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East Kootenay Forest Roads Benefit April 14, 2009

Posted by admin in : Bill Bennett , comments closed

East Kootenay residents will benefit from $270,300 to improve
travel and safety conditions on several Forest Service roads (FSRs),
Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell, Community Development Minister
Kevin Krueger and Tourism, Culture and the Arts Minister Bill Bennett
announced today.

“These Forest Service road improvements will provide important
access to extensive recreation opportunities for British Columbians,”
said Bennett. “As an important draw for tourists who covet B.C.’s
backcountry, it’s critical to the local tourism economy that these
extensive roads are maintained.”

The maintenance will occur over approximately 356 kilometres of
Forest Service roads and the works include brushing, ditching, surface
grading and packing.

Gray Creek, Redding Creek, and St. Mary’s Lake FSRs provide a
more direct, but rugged, link between Kootenay Lake and Kimberley. Pilot
Bay FSR provides access from Highway 3A to Pilot Point Provincial Park,
on the shores of Kootenay Lake.

The Bugaboo and Spillimacheen North FSRs, near Spillimacheen on
the Columbia River, provide access to rural residences and numerous
recreation sites, including Bugaboo Provincial Park. The Horsethief and
Horsethief-Forster FSRs, near Radium, provide access to numerous
recreation sites.

The Findlay and Whitetail Lake FSR, west of Canal Flats, provide
access to a children’s camp and recreation sites. The Whiteswan Lake and
Lussier FSRs, east of Canal Flats, provide access to Whiteswan Lake
Provincial Park, Lussier Hot Springs and Top of the World Provincial
Park. The Bull River and Galbraith Creek FSRs, east of Cranbrook,
provide access to various recreation sites.

“We want to ensure that crucial Forest Service Roads that connect
rural communities, as well as parks and recreation areas, receive the
maintenance needed to keep those communities accessible,” said Bell.

“Communities in the Kootenays have told this government they value
the economic and social opportunities that come from having a stronger
road network. We listened and we are taking action to strengthen the
connection between isolated communities and city centres,” said Krueger.
“Whether it’s accessing health care, exploring new mineral opportunities
or opening new regions to tourism, the benefits of this investment will
strengthen the region as a whole.”

British Columbia’s 55,000-kilometre network of Forest Service
roads is bigger than the provincial highway system. As first announced
by Premier Campbell at the 2008 Union of B.C. Municipalities convention,
the Ministry of Forests and Range is providing $20 million to improve
travel conditions on Forest Service roads that serve as crucial
transportation links to rural communities and recreation sites. The
Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada committed on
April 7, 2009 to a further $20 million in shared funding for additional
Forest Service road upgrades that will be announced in the coming
months.

New road maintenance funding is the latest in a series of
initiatives to improve safety on Forest Service roads, which include the
establishment of radio protocols, speed enforcement through expanded use
of radar guns, and the expansion of the Vehicle Identification Plates
Program.