Saskatchewan has a transportation infrastructure system of roads, highways, freeways, airports, ferries, pipelines, trails, waterways, and railway systems serving a population of approximately 1,132,505 (according to 2021 census) inhabitants year-round.
In the 19th century and early 20th century transportation relied on harnessing oxen to Red River carts or horse to wagon. Maritime transportation was via manual labour such as canoe or wind on sail and utilized the North Saskatchewan River or South Saskatchewan River routes mainly. Water or land travel speeds was approximately 8 to 15kilometres per hour (5 to 9miles per hour).[4] Settlement was along river routes, and trade was locally concentrated initially on fur trading posts. Agricultural commodities were perishable, and trade centres were within 50kilometres. Rural areas centred on villages, and they were approximately 10 kilometres (6.2mi) apart. The advent of steam railways and steamships connected resources and markets of vast distances in the late 19th century.[4]
Automobile and truck travel was employed in the early 20th century with highways and roads being under construction. The roadways ran parallel to the rail lines. The auto was abandoned in the depression years of the dirty thirties, and cars were towed by horse and became known as Bennett Buggies. The years following World War II showed much growth as the social economic lifestyle of Saskatchewan changed considerably. Gone were the farmers on each quarter section, and also leaving the prairie landscape were elevators. Grain storage elevators used to be required every 6miles for loads by horse and cart. Combines introduced large scale farms, trucks introduced larger centres with a larger quantity of elevators. In the 1940s the branch rail lines were not economically feasible, were abandoned, and soon disappeared. As farms increased in size township roads and road allowances became part of the field.
Trails
Red River Cart
Historically buffalo and Red River cart trails criss-crossed the prairies. Métis fur traders and brigades would follow these trails freighting supplies for the Hudson's Bay Company. Originally following trails created by bison, trails connected together trading posts, North-West Mounted Police forts and barracks. The Dominion government Boundary Commission Trail, the North-West Mounted Police Red Coat Trail, American–Canadian boundary trails, telegraph trail, railway trail, and rebellion trails were later trails.[5] Due to the hard compaction of prairie sod, the remnants of this trail are still visible via satellite imaging to the trained historian eye.[6]
Fort Qu'Appelle, Prince Albert, and the territorial capital, Battleford were the main centres in the 19th century.[5] From these extended a variety of trails as spokes extend from the hub on a wheel. This includes he 190 mile long (300km) Swift Current-Battleford Trail, an important late-nineteenth century transportation and communications link between settlements of Swift Current and Battleford
The boundary survey trail was a 30-foot (9.1m) wide trail cut through timber and brush by a surveying team marking the 49th parallel beginning between 1872 and 1874. In 1874, the North-West Mounted Police were dispatched to Fort Whoop-Up in Alberta. They travelled through the United States to the Manitoba border, and from there were to follow the boundary survey trail to Fort Whoop-Up. There actual route extended through Roche Percee, the Cypress Hills, Ponteix, and near Medicine Hat. 1875 marked the beginnings of the Telegraph Trail which was a 132-foot (40m) wide trail from Fort Pelly, to Fort Carlton, Humboldt, Prince Albert, Battleford, and onwards to Edmonton. This was to be the initial stages for the transcontinental railway to travel through the more populated areas of the fur trade area and the North-West Territories' capital, Battleford. The southern area of the North-West territories was deemed in Palliser's report to be a vast desert and unfit for human habitation.[5]
The first Canadian transcontinental railway was constructed by the Canadian Pacific Railway between 1881 and 1885.[7] The first proposal was northerly through the Saskatchewan provisional district of the North-West Territories to support the fur trade. The final established route was through the Assiniboia provisional district of the North-West Territories. Towns such as Moosomin, Qu'Appelle, Regina, Moose Jaw, and Swift Current sprang up along the railway and became trade centres.[5] The new economy saw grain and agricultural farming as a viable alternative, and Clifford Sifton implemented a massive immigration policy in support of settling the West. The rail lines followed the established trails generally as the most practical method of travelling through the prairies. After the great east–west transcontinental railway was built, north–south connector branch lines were established. In 1885, the Regina and Long Lake Railway connected Regina and Craven. The railway was eventually expanded north to Prince Albert.[8] The Regina and Long Lake railroad or the Qu'Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railroad and Steamboat Company crossed the South Saskatchewan River at Saskatoon, Hub city in 1890.[9] In 1907 the communities of Melville, The Rail Centre, Watrous, and Biggar[10] became divisional points for the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway.[11] Moose Jaw, dubbed Little Chicago, was the northern terminus on the Soo Line, which ran to Chicago, and provided a route during the prohibition years for alcohol freighting between Canada and the United States.[12] The 1920s saw the largest rise in trackage as the CPR and CNR fell into competition to provide rail service within ten kilometres. In the 1960s there were applications for abandonment of branch lines.[2]
The Dominion Land Survey system for homesteading provided for townships which were six miles square (36sqmi or 93km2). An iron post was driven into the ground at the north-east corner of every 1-mile (1.6km) square. Road allowances were to the north and east of the iron monuments.[14]
By 1921, there were 210,000 miles (340,000km) of road allowance in the province which began as dirt roads. A system began of improved and unimproved dirt, gravel, oil-gravel surfaced roads, and all weather paved roads and highways.[2] Currently Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation operates over 26,000 kilometres (16,000mi) of highways and divided highways, over 800 bridges, 12 separate ferries, and one barge. There are also municipal roads which comprise different surfaces. Asphalt concrete pavements comprise almost 9,000 kilometres (5,600mi), granular pavement almost 5,000 kilometres (3,100mi), non structural or thin membrane surface TMS are close to 7,000 kilometres (4,300mi) and finally gravel highways make up over 5,600 kilometres (3,500mi) through the province. TMS roads are maintained by the provincial government department: Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation. In the northern sector, ice roads which can only be navigated in the winter months comprise another approximately 150 kilometres (93mi) of travel.[16] Dirt roads also still exist in rural areas and would be maintained by the local resident. All in all, Saskatchewan consists of over 250,000 kilometres (160,000mi) of roads and highways, the highest amount of road surface compared to any other Canadian province.[17] Roads need to be constructed for the hot summer months, as well as the frigid winter months. Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation seeks to provide an operational transportation system that ensures the safe travel of people and products within a vast province. Crack filling, snow and ice removal, pavement marking, signage, lighting, and infrastructure planning. The rural municipalities care for rural roads of which 97 per cent are gravel and the rest asphalt surface. Road transport provides short and long haul movement for both commercial freight and passenger traffic. Short haul traffic moving small volumes is an economically feasible method low cost method of freight hauling.[18]
The Government of Canada has agreed to contribute $20 million for two new interchanges in Saskatoon. One of them being at the Sk Hwy 219 / Lorne Ave intersection with Circle Drive, the other at the Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge (Idylwyld Freeway) and Circle Drive. This is part of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative to improve access to the Canadian National Railway's intermodal freight terminal thereby increasing Asia-Pacific trade. Also, the Government of Canada will contribute $27 million to Regina to construct a Canadian Pacific Railway CPR intermodal facility and improve infrastructure transportation to the facility from both national highway networks, Sk Hwy 1, the TransCanada Highway and Sk Hwy 11, Louis Riel Trail. This also is part of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative to improve access to the CPR terminal and increase Asia-Pacific trade.[19]
As of 1946, the Saskatchewan Transportation Company (STC) was formed to provide inter city transportation services via highway bus service.[20] The provincial government closed STC on 31 May 2017.
Urban, suburban, and interurban transport has included streetcars, electric railways, electric trolleys (trolley buses), motor buses, and motor coaches.[18] The Saskatoon Electric Railway and Power Company, Moose Jaw Electric Railway Company and the Regina Municipal Railway , were electric railways, and were first operational in 1911. Regina stopped using the electric trolley buses in 1966.[21]Saskatoon's streetcar system closed in 1951, and its trolley bus system in 1974. The Saskatoon Transit System was renamed Saskatoon Transit Services in 1995.[22]
As early as 1874 the SS Northcote travelled between Grand Rapids, Manitoba and went as far west as Edmonton, Alberta, through Carlton House on the North Saskatchewan River. The City of Medicine Hat traversed the South Saskatchewan River waters near Saskatoon. Carrot River used steamships to aid in the logging industry. Last Mountain Lake used steamships and was a main impetus for the formation of the Qu'Appelle Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway and Steamship Company (QLLR).[20] The North West Navigation Co. had four steamships to aid in the fur trade industry, Princess, Marquette, Colville, and Glendevon. Winnipeg and Western Company's had three steamers, the Northcote, the Marquis and North West.[24]
Ferry services
There are currently twelve ferry services operating in the province, all under the jurisdiction of the Department of Highways. In the 1920s[25] through to the 1950s there were 36 ferries in operation, the highest number of ferries in the province.[20] In the 1860s the Hudson's Bay Company built a river ferry near Fort Carlton on the North Saskatchewan River. 1871 saw the ferry crossing at Gabriel's Crossing near present-day St. Laurent Ferry.[23] In 1883 a ferry on the Battleford Trail was able to provide crossing service for two red river carts across the South Saskatchewan River at Saskatchewan Landing. This ferry operated until 1953 when the second bridge was officially opened.[26]
Early corduroy log road bridges,[28] and rail bridges were the precursors to vehicular traffic bridges. The Qu’Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway Company built a railway bridge in 1890 at Saskatoon crossing the South Saskatchewan River.[29] Saskatoon is termed "The City of Bridges".[30] By 1908, another two railway bridges were constructed in Saskatoon, the McDonald or CP Railway Bridge and the Grand Trunk or CN Railway Bridge. The Traffic Bridge, a truss bridge opened October 10, 1907, as the first vehicle bridge in Saskatoon.[31]
Saskatoon featured its inaugural Air Harbour in 1913 near the exhibition grounds. The Hudson Bay Slough site established in 1922 became the site for the present airport. The Department of National Defence, Civil Aviation Branch requested the City of Saskatoon to establish an airport. Saskatoon Airport was part of the Department of National Defence during the years of World War II and an RCAF training school was established. Trans-Canada Air Lines began 1947. The Saskatoon Airport (YXE) was named the John G. Diefenbaker Airport in the official ceremony, June 23, 1993.[37]Roland J. Groome Airfield is the official designation for the Regina International Airport (YQR) as of August 3, 2005. The Regina Flying Club sought to establish an airport as of 1927, and in 1930 the Regina Municipal Airport was constructed.
Under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP),[38] twenty Service Flying Training Schools (RAF) were established at various Saskatchewan locations in World War II.[39] Moose Jaw RCAF is home to the aeronautics team, the Snowbirds.[38]
Airlines offering service to Saskatchewan are Air Canada, WestJet Airlines, Transwest Air, Norcanair Airlines, La Ronge Aviation Services Ltd, La Loche Airways, Osprey Wings Ltd, Buffalo Narrows Airways Ltd, Skyservice Airlines, Île-à-la-Crosse Airways Ltd, Voyage Air, Pronto Airways, Venture Air Ltd, Pelican Narrows Air Service, Jackson Air Services Ltd, and Northern Dene Airways Ltd.[40]
The Trans Canada Trail is a trail traversing every province across Canada.[41] Across Saskatchewan are a variety of trails, hiking, cross country ski trails,[42] and snowmobile or skidoo trails.[43] Hiking or backpacking trails abound across Saskatchewan, the most notable is the hike into Grey Owl's Cabin within the Prince Albert National Park.[44]Skytrail, Canada's longest pedestrian bridge, is in the Outlook & District Regional Park.[45] The Saskatchewan Trails Association brings together information for trail enthusiasts of all forms hikers, cyclists, horseback riders, skiers, ski-dooers, or canoeists.[46] The Three Rivers Trail Association (TRTA) is developing interpretative trails between the Arm River, the Qu'Appelle River, and the South Saskatchewan Rivers.[47] The Meewasin Valley Authority has constructed and maintained a series of walking trails along the South Saskatchewan River banks in Saskatoon.[48]
Prince Albert is the third-largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada, after Saskatoon and Regina. It is situated near the centre of the province on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. The city is known as the "Gateway to the North" because it is the last major centre along the route to the resources of northern Saskatchewan. Prince Albert National Park is located 51 km (32 mi) north of the city and contains a wealth of lakes, forest, and wildlife. The city itself is located in a transition zone between the aspen parkland and boreal forest biomes. Prince Albert is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Prince Albert No. 461, of which it is the seat, but is politically separate.
The Qu'Appelle River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba that flows 430 kilometres (270 mi) east from Lake Diefenbaker in south-western Saskatchewan to join the Assiniboine River in Manitoba, just south of Lake of the Prairies, near the village of St. Lazare. It is in a region called the Prairie Pothole Region of North America, which extends throughout three Canadian provinces and five U.S. states. It is also within Palliser's Triangle and the Great Plains ecoregion.
Fort Qu'Appelle is a town in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan located in the Qu'Appelle River valley 70 km (43 mi) north-east of Regina, between Echo and Mission Lakes of the Fishing Lakes. It is not to be confused with the once-significant nearby town of Qu'Appelle. It was originally established in 1864 as a Hudson's Bay Company trading post. Fort Qu'Appelle, with its 1,919 residents in 2006, is at the junction of Highway 35, Highway 10, Highway 22, Highway 56, and Highway 215. The 1897 Hudson's Bay Company store, 1911 Grand Trunk Pacific Railway station, Fort Qu'Appelle Sanatorium, and the Treaty 4 Governance Centre in the shape of a teepee are all landmarks of this community. Additionally, the Noel Pinay sculpture of a man praying commemorates a burial ground, is a life-sized statue in a park beside Segwun Avenue.
Highway 1 is the Saskatchewan section of the Trans-Canada Highway mainland route. The total distance of the Trans-Canada Highway in Saskatchewan is 654 kilometres (406 mi). The highway traverses Saskatchewan from the western border with Alberta, from Highway 1, to the Manitoba border where it continues as PTH 1. The Trans-Canada Highway Act was passed on December 10, 1949. The Saskatchewan segment was completed August 21, 1957, and completely twinned on November 6, 2008. The speed limit along the majority of the route is 110 kilometres per hour (70 mph) with urban area thoroughfares slowing to a speed of 80–100 kilometres per hour (50–62 mph). Portions of the highway—the section through Swift Current, an 8-kilometre (5 mi) section east of Moose Jaw, and a 44-kilometre (27 mi) section between the West Regina Bypass and Balgonie—are controlled-access. Highway 1 serves as a major east–west transport route for commercial traffic. It is the main link between southern Saskatchewan's largest cities, and also serves as the province's main link to the neighbouring provinces of Alberta and Manitoba.
Highway 16 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is the Saskatchewan section of the Yellowhead Highway, and also the Trans-Canada Highway Yellowhead section. The main purpose of this highway is to connect Saskatchewan with Canadian cities such as Edmonton and Winnipeg. The highway runs from the Alberta boundary in Lloydminster to the Manitoba boundary near Marchwell. Major cities it passes through are Saskatoon, North Battleford in the central part of the province, Yorkton in the far east and Lloydminster to the far west.
Highway 11 is a major north-south highway in Saskatchewan, Canada that connects the province's three largest cities: Regina, Saskatoon, and Prince Albert. It is a structural pavement major arterial highway which is approximately 391 kilometres (243 mi) long. It is also known as the Louis Riel Trail (LRT) after the 19th century Métis leader. It runs from Highway 1 in Regina until Highway 2 south of Prince Albert. Historically the southern portion between Regina and Saskatoon was Provincial Highway 11, and followed the Dominion Survey lines on the square, and the northern portion between Saskatoon and Prince Albert was Provincial Highway 12.
Highway 2 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is the longest highway in Saskatchewan at 809 km (503 mi). The highway has a few divided sections but is mostly undivided. However, only about 18 kilometres (11 mi) near Moose Jaw, 11 kilometres (7 mi) near Chamberlain, and 21 kilometres (13 mi) near Prince Albert are divided highway. Highway 2 is a major north-south route beginning at the Canada–US border at the Port of West Poplar River and Opheim, Montana customs checkpoints. Montana Highway 24 continues south. It passes through the major cities of Moose Jaw in the south and Prince Albert in the north. Highway 2 overlaps Highway 11 between the towns of Chamberlain and Findlater. This 11 kilometres (7 mi) section of road is a wrong-way concurrency. The highway ends at La Ronge, where it becomes Highway 102.
Highway 5 is a major highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It begins in downtown Saskatoon and runs eastward to the Manitoba border near Togo, where it becomes Provincial Road 363. The highway is approximately 393 kilometres (244 mi) long. Between the early 1900s (decade) and 1976, Provincial Highway 5 was a trans-provincial highway travelling approximately 630 kilometres (390 mi) in length. At this time it started at the Alberta border in Lloydminster and traveled east to the Manitoba border.
Highway 6 is a paved undivided major provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Montana Highway 16 at the Canada–US border near the Canada customs port of Regway to Highway 55 near Choiceland. Highway 6 is about 523 km (325 mi) long. The CanAm Highway comprises Saskatchewan Highways from south to north: SK 35, Sk 39, Sk 6, Sk 3, as well as Sk 2. 330 kilometres (210 mi) of Saskatchewan Highway 6 contribute to the CanAm Highway between Corinne and Melfort.
Saskatchewan, the middle of Canada's three prairie provinces, has an area of 588,276.09 square kilometres (227,134.67 sq mi) and population of 1,150,632, mostly living in the southern half of the province.
Highway 35 is a paved, undivided provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from the U.S. border at the Port of Oungre north to a dead end near the north shore of Tobin Lake. The southern end of Highway 35 is one segment of the CanAm Highway, which is an international highway connecting Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Highway 35 is about 569 kilometres (354 mi) long.
Central Industrial is a light industrial area in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, that comprises educational, recreational facilities, hotels and businesses along Idylwyld Drive. The community meets up with the Central Business District CBD to the west and south, and residential areas east and north.
The history of Saskatoon began with the first permanent non-indigenous settlement of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, in 1883 when Toronto Methodists, wanting to escape the liquor trade in that city, decided to set up a "dry" community in the rapidly growing prairie region. As of 1882 this area was a part of the provisional district named Saskatchewan, North-West Territories (NWT). Their organization, the Temperance Colonization Society, first examined this area in 1882 and found that it would make an excellent location to found their community based on the ideals of the temperance movement; Saskatoon traditionally considers 1882 its founding year and thus marked its centennial in 1982. The settlers, led by John Neilson Lake, arrived on the site of what is now Saskatoon by traveling by railway from Ontario to Moose Jaw, Assiniboia, NWT, and then completing the final leg via horse-drawn cart. The plan for the Temperance Colony soon failed as the group was unable to obtain a large block of land within the community. Nonetheless, John Lake is commonly identified as the founder of Saskatoon; a public school, a park and two streets are named after him.
Highway 41 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 5 in Saskatoon to Highway 3 / Highway 6 in Melfort. The highway also intersects Highway 2. It is about 163 kilometres (101 mi) long.
Highway 26 is a provincial highway on the western side of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The southern terminus is at the junction with Highway 4 about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of North Battleford. From there, the highway runs generally north-west until just south of St. Walburg where takes a more northerly route. Highway 26 terminates at a junction with Highways 224 and 950 on the north side of the village of Goodsoil, just south of Meadow Lake Provincial Park. It is about 198 kilometres (123 mi) long.
Culture of Saskatchewan views the patterns of human activity in the central prairie province of Canada examining the way people live in the geography, climate, and social context of Saskatchewan.
The Ministry of Highways is divided into the Operations, Policy and Programs, and Corporate Services Divisions and the Communications Branch. The ministry is the employer of over 1,476 employees diversified amongst 105 communities in Saskatchewan. The current Minister of Highways and Infrastructure is Jeremy Cockrill.
There are numerous heritages and cultural attractions in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Museums, dinosaur digs, aboriginal cultural and heritage sites, art galleries, professional sport venues, spas, handcraft, antique and tea shops, agricultural tours, theatre, and archaeological sites comprise over 600 varied Saskatchewan institutions.
Highway 641 is a 600-series municipal highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 39 near Rouleau north to Highway 15 at Semans. It is about 153.3 kilometres (95.3 mi) long. The highway intersects the Trans-Canada Highway south of Pense and east of Belle Plaine, Highway 20 at Lumsden, and Highway 22 at Earl Grey. Local Improvement Districts were the precursors of rural municipalities which initially established and maintained roads in their area. Early settlers helped to construct and maintain the route and would get paid road improvement wages from the local rural municipality. The 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) concurrency between Highway 20 and Highway 641 was constructed in 1927 following the removal of the Canadian National Railway line between Lumsden and Craven. The remainder of the road followed Dominion land survey township and range lines.
1 2 3 4 5 Shillington, C. Howard (1985). Historic Land Trails of Saskatchewan. North Vancouver, British Columbia: Pifer Printers Ltd. ISBN9780969256502. page 1-116.
↑ Stewart, Iain (2006). "Grand Trunk Pacific Railway". CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF REGINA. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Archived from the original on 17 September 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
1 2 Minister of Trade and Commerce, Howe, the Right Honourable C.D. (1956). "The Official Handbook of Present Conditions and Recent Progress". Ottawa, Ontario: Queens Printer and Controller of Stationery. page 265.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
↑ Hon. Lawrence Cannon, M.P., P.C. Minister of transport, infrastructure and communities (2005–2008). "CNW Group". Media Relations: Communications, Transport Canada, Ottawa. www.newswire.ca - CNW Group. Retrieved 27 April 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
1 2 3 Cousins, Brian (2006). "Transportation". CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF REGINA. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Archived from the original on 16 May 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
1 2 Cousins, Brian; Coneghan, Daria (2006). "Ferries and Barges". CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF REGINA. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
↑ Ivanochko, Bob (2006). "Bridges". CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF REGINA. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
↑ "Airport History". Saskatoon Airport Authority. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
1 2 Chabun, Will (2006). "Aviation". CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF REGINA. Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
↑ Kraushaar, Clint (May 1998). "The RAF comes to Estevan". The Estevan Airport: A History to 1988. Estevan Community Access Project & Estevan Public Library. Retrieved 18 January 2008.
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