Improvements to the Deerfoot Tr. in Calgary may take a little longer because of inflation..On Tuesday, the minister of transportation in Alberta said, "Alberta Transportation cancelled a public-private partnership (P3) approach to upgrade Deerfoot Trail, opting to procure the improvements in smaller pieces.".“We committed that we would only pursue P3s when we found value for taxpayer money," Prasad Panda said..“While the government is not going ahead with a P3 approach, we remain committed to making improvements to Alberta’s busiest highway and will move ahead with the necessary upgrades to help people get to their destinations safely and more efficiently.".The Alberta government said the decision was made because of inflation as prices in the construction industry across the country soar..“Current economic conditions have resulted in pricing volatility and historically high inflation in the construction industry, which means a P3 approach to Deerfoot Trail improvements is not economically viable," Panda said..Although this announcement may be a disappointment to commuters, Panda said the government has a plan..“We will focus on improving the most congested areas on the highway first to improve traffic flow and reduce travel times for commuters in the Calgary region," Panda said.."Work is underway to identify the most critical areas for improvement that can be tendered and completed as quickly as possible. Alberta’s government will continue to make use of P3s where and when it makes best financial sense to taxpayers.”.Alberta NDP says cancellation a "good thing".The Alberta NDP said the cancellation of the P3 by the UCP is “Good news for Calgarians" in reaction to the UCP announcement..The NDP said motorists in the Calgary area will now be "spared from having to pay tolls, now that the UCP has realized a P3 to upgrade Deerfoot Trail is a bad idea.".“Students and families using the disastrous P3 schools in Edmonton could have told Minister Prasad Panda that fact, as they struggle with dangerously poor site drainage and runaway HVAC systems which the school staff aren’t allowed to operate," Lorne Dach, of the Alberta NDP said..“The UCP should immediately drop the P3 approach from all projects they are pursuing for schools and hospitals and road improvement. Projects built by an Alberta NDP government will always be directly accountable to taxpayers.”
