Highway budget can put Manitoba on global trade stage: MHCA
The provincial government can move the province’s global trade profile to another level by giving Manitoba Transportation & Infrastructure a bigger role in economic development, the MHCA urges in a pre-budget brief.
“Now is the time for robust investment to grow Manitoba’s economy, an approach Premier Stefanson has publicly championed, including through trade infrastructure investment,” the MHCA’s brief notes.
The brief, submitted to Finance Minister Cliff Cullen, requests a meeting in the next week to discuss suggestions around investment in the provincial trade corridors.
“The MHCA is collaborating with five national business associations to propose a National Plan for Trade Corridor Infrastructure, and we see Manitoba playing a central role in promoting this across Canada and to Ottawa,” MHCA President and CEO Chris Lorenc said.
“Manitoba is in a unique geographical position, sitting as a hub of our country’s trade routes to all cardinal points of the map. Manitoba’s investment strategy is key to ensuring seamless, connected transportation of goods and services across Canada and to international markets.”
MHCA is working, through the Western Canada Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association, with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada, Canadian Construction Association and the Canada West Foundation in a cross-country effort to see investment in trade corridors and gateways increased and organized strategically. Among its global peers, Canada is the only country that does not use a national strategy that prioritizes investment in trade infrastructure according to the project’s expected return to GDP.
The brief stressed the need to amplify the role of Manitoba’s highways capital program, and the water-related infrastructure, from a trade perspective but also because the condition of these assets must be climate resilient, to protect our communities and economy.
Manitoba’s highways and bridges, combined, face an investment deficit of about $900 million.
The highways capital budget needs to be substantially increased but the program must be organized to ensure the budget set each year is expended. There has been significant under-expenditure since 2016, some of which gets carried over to the succeeding budget year.
For MTI to draw maximum value from its annual investment program, it requires an effective, practical partnership with the industry. The brief recommends the program be supported with:
- Sustainable predictable incremental budgets – volatility costs money and disrespects asset management
- Annual program and budgets supported by early tendering and timely awarding of contracts based upon a reliable tender advertising schedule — all help to ensure budget set = budget tendered/awarded
- Balancing risk for a true partnership in projects – e.g., eliminate cost uncertainties; reduce bid validity period; equal right to access binding arbitration; all add to program dollar value.
- Prompt payment for work performed and products produced. This is a real cost.
