DAVIDSON—People hoping to see work begin on
safety improvements at Davidson’s busy Highway 11 intersections will have to
wait at least another year.
Those spots were not among the projects
highlighted in the provincial budget that was table last Wednesday in the
provincial legislature.
The Saskatchewan government announced it
was investing $20 million in safety improvements on provincial highways in
2019-2020. Of that, $13 million will be spent in the first year of a five-year
$65 million enhanced intersection safety program and $7 million for a safety
improvement program. The budget will see $706 million spent on Saskatchewan’s
highways with $351 million of that for capital projects. There is $60 million
earmarked to begin, continue or complete twinning and passing lanes.
The intersections on Highway 11 at Davidson
are not included in this program.
Arm River MLA Greg Brkich said the
Department of Highways is studying the intersections in conjunction with the
Town of Davidson to determine what to
do.
He said this includes considering a request
for a reduced speed limit zone on Highway 11.
“It’s on the radar screen,” Brkich said.
The 2019-2020 budget projects revenues of $15.03 billion, a
5.5 per cent increase from last year. This assumes revenues will be slightly
higher than last year with the West Texas Intermediate oil price around $59.75
per barrel and potash prices at $221 per KCI (potassium chloride) tonne.
Expenses are estimated at $14.99 billion, an increase of 2.6 per cent from last
year. This could change if there are crop failures or forest fires or other
unforeseen calamities.
“It’s a good balanced budget for the people
of the province,” Brkich said. “This is what we have worked towards.”
He said Saskatchewan is one of the few
provinces in the country with a balanced budget.
The budget predicts a $34.4 million
surplus.
“We had a tough budget two years ago,”
Brkich said of the 2017-2018 budget that saw deep spending cuts in the face of
falling resource revenues. Brkich said that budget laid the foundation for the
province, which is still on a path of slow, steady growth.
The provincial government is calling this
year’s financial plan “The Right Balance”.
At $5.89 billion, health care is the
greatest expense in the budget. The Saskatchewan Health Authority received an
$113 million increase to bring its funding up to $3.6 billion. The province is
increasing funding for targeted mental health and addictions initiatives by
$29.8 million. The province will now spend $402 on mental health and
addictions.
Education received a slight 0.6 per cent increase in funding. Total spending on education is $3.28 billion. School divisions will receive $26.2 million more than last year to bring this total to $1.9 billion.
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