The 2016 Fort McMurray wildfirerevealed the need for more routes out of isolated northern Alberta communities and now, the province is putting money towards making that happen.
Right now, highways 63 and 881 are the only routes leading south out of Fort McMurray but the province has been exploring other options for several years.
Adding another route out of Fort McMurray is something that was also considered under Rachel Notley’s NDP government.
In the 2025 budget, the Alberta government is directing $311 million over three years to increase emergency route capacity out of Fort McMurray towards the Peace Region region, which will also benefit several First Nations in the middle of northern Alberta.
The budget includes funds to conduct detailed design work to extend Highway 686 between Peerless Lake and Fort McMurray, which last year Premier Danielle Smith said the province had been looking into.
The province said it will add a new east-west egress route and provide new capacity for the movement of energy products, heavy equipment and the delivery of goods and services.
The area’s MLA said building a new highway to the west of Fort McMurray is a game-changer for the entire region.
“This project will enhance safety for our residents by improving emergency access and unlocking new economic opportunities,” said Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo MLA Tany Yao.
Currently, Highway 686 is a dirt road branching off of Highway 88 at Red Earth Creek, and connects the remote northern First Nations of Peerless Lake and Trout Lake.
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Wildfires in recent years threatened the single route in and out of the communities about 500 km north of Edmonton, in a remote area east of Peace River and north of Slave Lake.
The new Highway 686 alignment will extend the road by about 218 km east through thick muskeg and Boreal forest to Fort McMurray, but a construction date is still likely years down the road.
An overall cost to get it done has yet to be determined.
An analysis in the months after the 2016 wildfire that forced more than 88,000 people to flee Fort McMurray found a new east-west highway was estimated to cost at least $1.5 billion.
“The Highway 686 project is moving in the right direction because it is being shaped by First Nations, not just around us, but with us,” said Bigstone Cree Nation Chief Andy Alook.
“The province has shown a willingness to work with our Nations in a way that prioritizes our involvement and our ability to directly benefit from the work ahead.
“That approach must continue, because when our people are full participants in infrastructure projects like this, we don’t just see roads being built. We see opportunities being created for generations to come.”
In the meantime, the 2025 budget proposes funding over three years for engineering work for grade, base and paving of about 61.7 km of the north-south segment of Highway 686 near Red Earth Creek and Peerless Lake in Peerless Trout First Nation, with additional funding over three years to pave more than 27 km between Peerless Lake and Trout Lake.
“For years, our Nation has fought for better road access, knowing how critical it is for our safety, mobility and economic future,” said Peerless Trout First Nation Chief Gilbert Okemow.
“The province’s enhanced funding for the Highway 686 corridor — especially for paving the road from Red Earth Creek all the way to Trout Lake — is a direct and positive response to our advocacy and our Nation’s needs.”
Money is also being put towards several other highway projects that are underway or in the planning phase in northeastern Alberta, the province said on Tuesday.
That includes $101 million for twinning Highway 63, north of Fort McMurray, between Mildred Lake and the Peter Lougheed Bridge.
The province is also putting $141 million over three years in safety upgrades to Highway 881, from just south of Fort McMurray to Lac La Biche. That winding, single-lane highway is the only other north-south route to Fort McMurray and has many oil and gas camps, along with rural communities, off it.
The Highway 881 improvements include 40 km of 14 new passing lanes, an oversize load staging area, rest area, and several intersection upgrades. Construction is expected to take three to four years and be completed by fall 2028.
The province said $7 million over three years would also go towards planning an extension to Highway 956 from La Loche in northwestern Saskatchewan to Fort McMurray, providing an additional route to and from the Wood Buffalo region.
Planning will commence in 2025 and is anticipated to be complete in the 2026-2027 fiscal year, the province said, adding the design is expected to take about three years to complete.
