Road Costs - MB vs Elsewhere

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Highlight Winnipeg and Manitoba excessive construction costs compared to other provinces or countries. Try to adjust for inflation if able.

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Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge (2025)

Cost: $400 million CAD.

For anyone who still thinks $100 million for a 2-lane rural overpass is normal (Carberry). Here's the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge in China nearing completion in only 3yrs. It's the highest bridge in the world, has 6-lanes, and has a 1.4km span. Canada and Manitoba live in the stone age.

https://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/index.php?title=Huajiang_Grand_Canyon_Bridge

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Galway Interchange. St Johns, Newfoundland. (2022)

Contract value: $10.3 million CAD

Even has turning circles too. Uses "Cor-Arch" construction. Basically a quonset on a footing with dirt on top. Rural overpasses don't cost $100 million.

Article: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/galway-interchange-construction-1.7313361
Construction Method: (Source)
Google Maps: (Source)

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I just counted overpasses.

Manitoba - 29 overpasses
Newfoundland - 78 overpasses

Nfld has almost triple the overpasses. All while MB has 3x the population, 75% higher GDP, 2x the highway budget, and roughly the same core highway kilometers. Wow. I hope reporters are watching this thread. This needs publishing. MB needs to learn from Nfld.

Road Distances By Province: https://tc.canada.ca/en/corporate-services/policies/road-transportation-0

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Canmore Animal Crossing (2023)

Contract Value: $17.5 million CAD

There were 6 bids. The $17m bid had problems. The highest bid was $23m. So a range of $17-23m. These animal crossings are 5 times wider than a 2-lane rural overpass like Carberry or Yellowhead (50m wide vs 8m wide).

https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/wildlife-crossing-canmore-construction-delays