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No decision yet on southwest Anthony Henday but it’s getting closer
A view of the southwest leg of Anthony Henday Drive from the Global 1 news helicopter.
Global News
While you sat behind the wheel on Monday, dealing with traffic that didn’t really move, the thought of diverting to the Anthony Henday in southwest Edmonton likely crossed your mind.
It’s been on the mind of planners both at the Alberta legislature and at Edmonton City Hall as well. The project manager for Edmonton’s ring road confirmed on Tuesday that consultants have been hired, plans are being looked at and work is being done to expand that original stretch that was the first to open 10 years ago from two lanes to three.
“I’m guessing this project is probably coming more on the radar, but exactly when it is going to go ahead is hard to predict,” said Bill Van Der Meer, who confirmed Alberta Transportation officials review the project annually along with other projects like the Calgary ring road, the bypass in Red Deer and other roadways.
They look at traffic and congestion, but also regional tie-ins.
“It’s a province-wide priority list,” Van Der Meer said.
He said more will be known in the spring when the budget is clearer. Right now, lane widening is not in the three-year plan.
The southwest expansion of the Anthony Henday is also intertwined with other projects in the area. There’s extending Terwillegar Drive into 170 Street to service the west side of Edmonton International Airport. There’s also work on 41 Avenue S.W. as cargo expansion continues to be a regional priority.
Mayor Don Iveson said the airport plan remains a focus of the Airports Authority, Leduc County and the City of Leduc as they look at long-term economic development.
He said they’re not only trying to lure e-commerce giant Amazon to Edmonton, but Alibaba as well.
“It’s the opportunity to do a significant amount of work with third-party logistics and freight forwarding and distribution,” he said. “It’s one of the reasons why those roads will be important in the medium term for economic growth and for why good planning on the back side of the airport is critical to our long-term prosperity.”
