Minister updates provincial water, transportation plans

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on August 15, 2025.

asmith@medicinehatnews.com

Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors Devin Dreeshen on Thursday afternoon offered insight into recent rural investment, supporting various road and water projects.

A total of $114.6 million in grant funding was announced in late July, provided as part of Budget 2025 through the Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Program, the Alberta Municipal Water/Wastewater Partnership and Water for Life. This includes 51 transportation projects and 35 water projects.

Among these projects locally are a $2.6-million grant for reconstruction of Range Road 150 in Newell County, west of Brooks, which aims to provide connectivity on the county’s future truck route for commercial vehicles and residents alike.

An investment into Cypress County’s Seven Persons Sewer Force Main replacement for over $1 million is also among the projects, as was an $8.9-million grant to the City of Brooks, allowing design and build of a mechanical membrane bioreactor wastewater treatment plant to replace the lagoon-based system.

When it comes to what projects received part of the $114.6 million in funding, Dreeshen says there is both an art and a science to selecting priorities.

“There’s obviously more demand for provincial funding for municipal projects through grants, than there are provincial dollars available, and that’s just, unfortunately always been the case,” said Dreeshen.

When looking at transportation projects, whether they be bridges or roads, the province tries to prioritize those that are deteriorated the most, said Dreeshen.

However, population growth as well as road usage are also taken into account, as to be able to prioritize busier routes that have more Albertans on them versus the less populated ones.

This funding, says the province, is part of an ongoing commitment to rural Albertans and supporting rural and small municipalities in building and maintaining critical local transportation, and water and wastewater infrastructure.

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