Strahl announces $1.27M for transit, trails in N.W.T.

Six communities in the Northwest Territories will receive money for public transit projects from the federal and territorial governments,Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl announcedTuesday.

In his first visit to Yellowknife since taking the portfolio in August, Strahl announced a total of $1.27 million funding in the first round of a new federal-territorial public transit funds agreement.

The City of Yellowknife will receive a total of $400,000 to upgrade and build new bus shelters, buy and install secure bicycle racks, and upgrade the city's trail system.

Other communities that will receive funding are:

• Fort Smith $450,000 to build a six-kilometre community trail system, giving residents an alternative to walking, cycling or skiing on roads.
• Hay River $190,310 to upgrade the local trail system and establish a new handi-bus service for seniors and people with disabilities. The town has been without a handi-bus service since 2001.
• Lutselk'e $110,000 to create a shuttle service between the community and the local airport, located 3.5 kilometres away.
• Gameti $80,000 to set up a mini-bus service for local elders.
• Sachs Harbour $44,400 to replace the hamlet's aging airport shuttle.

"These projects were selected based on the program priorities of sustainability, building on existing systems, project need, and partnerships," Municipal Affairs Minister Michael McLeod said Tuesday.

But Yellowknife Mayor Gord Van Tighem, who also heads up the territorial municipalities association, said while the money will help the recipient communities, smaller communities that received funding will need to find ways to keep their services going.

"So where the communities that have got rolling stock, one of their challenges now is going to be to raise their operating funding to keep the system going," Van Tighem said.

N.W.T. communities that did not receive funding Tuesday have one more chance. The deadline to apply for the second and final round of the federal-territorial transit funding is March 1, 2008.