The Government of Saskatchewan is partnering with Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) and the federal government to replace 100 RM bridges over the next four years.

“Investments in public infrastructure, such as road improvements and bridge replacements, help build strong and competitive rural communities and improve the quality of life for Canadians,” said Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development. “We are proud to support these vital projects in Saskatchewan that will help create well-paying, stable jobs during the construction phase, and will also have positive and long-lasting benefits for residents and businesses for years to come.”

“Our government continues to invest in rural infrastructure that improves safety and keeps our economy growing,” Highways and Infrastructure Minister Greg Ottenbreit said. “The food, fuel, fertilizer and manufactured goods that our province exports often begin their path to market on a municipal road. So we are happy to upgrade 100 rural bridges to ensure we can reliably get our goods to market.”

This program will support agriculture, energy, forestry and other rural-based sectors, as well as help RM's address infrastructure problems. Government Relations Minister Lori Carr spoke a bit about how Saskatchewan citizens rely on a safe and reliable transportation system.

“The announcement concerning rural bridge improvements will allow businesses and residents to continue connecting with each other and help keep Saskatchewan strong.” said Carr.

“There are about 1,475 bridges in rural Saskatchewan and many were built in the 60s and 70s and are at a point where the bridge needs to be replaced,” Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities President Ray Orb said. “This funding announcement will go towards addressing the current infrastructure challenge.”

Applications can be submitted through the SARM website, and the intake for RM bridge projects is currently open and closes on July 19, 2020.

According to the government release, many RM roads connect to the provincial or national highway system and weight-restricted bridges can create gaps and inefficiencies in the transportation network.

The provincial government has invested $313 million in rural infrastructure since 2007, and more than $9.8 billion on 15,000 km of highways and infrastructure since 2008. This is just another part of the governments $300 million in highways stimulus funds that will be invested over the next two years to stimulate Saskatchewan’s economic recovery. This project will be cost-shared up to $500,000, with about 17% of this amount coming from the federal government, and 33% coming from the provincial government. The remaining share will come from the RM's.