I'm wondering what the Beyond demographic thinks of the proposed Howse Pass Highway.
First a little backstory...
Howse Pass Highway has been talked about for decades but has never come to fruition. The highway would essentially be an extension of Highway 11 from Sask. River Crossing A.B. west to around Golden B.C. linking up with Highway 1. Opponents are worried about the ecological disruption of a highway through that area. Proponents see it as a trade corridor, reducing traffic through Kicking Horse Pass and improving safety. The one thing that we can all agree on, is Highway 93 (Icefields Parkway) is off limits to heavy vehicles. In the 70's, the AB government rebuilt Highway 11 to heavy vehicle standards, however, Highway 11 comes to a T intersection at Sask. Crossing with Highway 93. This basically means that Highway 11 is under utilized as heavy vehicles can't proceed onto Highway 93.
Here are some articles about it.
The first is the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce. They were lobbying the provincial government as far back as '03 for this highway.
http://reddeerchamber.com/_Library/2...4HowsePass.pdf
The second is a Economic feasibility study that was done in 2005. The coles notes on it were that the highway would be a great trade corridor advantage for Central Alberta.
http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&...13943164,d.d24
This article is about a central Alberta MLA reopening debate on the proposed highway in 2012.
http://www.reddeeradvocate.com/news/...162162185.html
This article is a counter to the above article calling it "ridiculous."
http://www.reddeeradvocate.com/news/...162303386.html
Finally, this is a recent timelapse video of the Pass as it sits now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpt907-Z7f8
IMO, for Calgarians, the only impact they might see is less traffic on Highway 1. Calgarians still have amazing access via Highway 1 into BC. It would mostly benefit Red Deer, Edmonton, Central AB.