C E O ’ S M E S S A G E
By Ron Glen, CEO, ARHCA
Big Wins in
Uncertain
Times
The world has changed drastically since the last edition
of Alberta Heavy magazine, and everyone is feeling
it. Earlier this year, we were entering a period of
severe budget cuts; and then COVID happened, and things
became even more uncertain. But your association has been
busy working in the background on your behalf, and we’ve
claimed some big wins.
To start, we managed to get government to commit $410
million to roads this season, which will bring jobs to our
members in communities all over Alberta and will help with
economic recovery.
Our next big win was convincing government to strike
the Fairness Advisory Panel so contractors can work directly
with government to seek relief for unforeseen disruptions in
both time and additional unforeseen costs, directly related
to health protocols imposed by governments to deal with
the pandemic. This approach is something that is only
happening in Alberta, and only with Alberta Transportation.
At the time of writing, we are nominating representatives to
this panel who will review issues raised by contractors that
can’t be resolved at the project manager level. This is a major
achievement in the fact that government is now recognizing
that risk must be shared and appropriately allocated to have
a well-functioning and competitive market to deliver value
to taxpayers.
Our third win was being invited to participate in the
Red Tape Reduction Industry Panel for the Construction
sector. The Panel’s mandate is to identify areas of greatest
regulatory and administrative burden, and to provide bold
ideas for alternate delivery models. ARHCA will use this
opportunity to advocate for appropriate levels of investment
in infrastructure and more predictable budgeting over
multiple years. The current ad-hoc approach to budgeting
no longer works, as evidenced by the diminishing quality of
Alberta’s $70 billion highway asset.
While our industry has received good news lately,
transportation funding for next year and beyond is in
jeopardy. As it stands now, the 2021 construction season is
going to be bleak as the cuts announced in this year’s budget
will reappear next year. We are going to have to fight tooth
and nail to convince government to invest in our roads
long-term.
The plan and your role in it
We need data from contractors to prove to government the
economic spinoff benefits of spending on highways. Premier
Kenney has talked a lot about a day of fiscal reckoning, so
we need to show how our industry boosts Alberta’s economy.
We will be looking for volunteers to help us document not
only how many jobs are created, but also how much money
is spent on rural hotels and restaurants as well as for supplies
and services. If we don’t have the data, we can’t prove our
point. So please, when we call on you this summer, make
sure you take the time to fill out our surveys and help us get
the information we need.
On another note
With more traffic on the roads, it will also be important
this summer to focus on safety. I want you to know we
are working on a plan to backfill the safety construction
program and bring back the Don’t RIP campaign. Even
though our funding for that program has been depleted, we
are working on creative ways to leverage it. Keep an eye out
for details soon.
Until then, I wish you all a great construction season and
stay safe. n
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