An interesting letter regarding timeline for Highway 1A and 22 has peaked a Councillor's interest.

Councillor Mary Lou Eckmeier says this particular roadwork has been off and on the provincial book for years, and while we are currently on the 'sunshine list' a recent letter from a land man on behalf of Alberta Transportation has her questioning if and when this project will be started, never mind completed.

"We do know that a land man has been talking to folks who own land on the north side of 1A up on the hill in the last 6 months about purchasing the land, fairly smalls amount of land, so not enough that we're going to widen that highway but the land man has indicated that the highway widening could be 3 to 15 years down the road."

There is an offer of proposal in writing to purchase land but no timeline has been indicated in writing.

Eckmeier has seen this project on and off the funded list before and says there is just no guarantee no matter who is in governing power.

"Anything could happen whether the NDP gets a second term or another government gets a term, fact of the matter is our province has gone now into further debt, I think more than it ever has been in a long time; so for any provincial government including the current to fund anything that is not an emergency or urgent would be a big surprise."

The intersection will also face challenges that many residents may not be aware of; town plans indicate road work will be done in phases and take years to complete.

"It will be years of construction before its finally finished once it does start. The taxpayer, the community, the public is going to have to be very patient as this isn't a solution that happens in one year, two years, probably won't even be finished in the next council's term."

Eckmeier suggests another plan that may be more feasible is to build a rail under/overpass; in Eckmeier's mind this plan will at least alleviate issues in town while we wait for news provincially.

"I think what is really going to solve some traffic congestion in town is a rail overpass/underpass within Cochrane, definitely less expensive than the Highway 1A/22 intersection but keeping in mind that the highway intersection is a provincial tax responsibility and anything within the town is a municipal tax responsibility. However, in the long run it is still coming from the same taxpayer, different pocket."

Eckmeier will try to remain hopeful the province comes forward sooner, meaning three years, than longer being 15.

"Until I see that shovel in the ground I wouldn't be counting on it, and personally I don't see it being approved in this budget."

Even if phase one makes it into the spring budget, Eckmeier shares it doesn't mean the rest of the phases will be completed sequentially.

"Phase one might get done, but two, three, four might not. Say if the first phase is an exit ramp going from east to west but you have nothing coming west to east or north to south or south to north. It is a huge project and it is going to take a huge commitment by which ever government is in power to make that happen."