Scenic stretch takes deadly toll (Trans-Canada near Lake Louise)

January 7, 2002
Source: Calgary Herald
Original story - link verified on January 7, 2002
By Kerry Williamson

At least eight people died on the single-lane stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Lake Louise last year, the most recent fatal crash claiming the lives of a Winnipeg couple on Dec. 28. Hundreds more are injured each year in collisions with other vehicles, wildlife or unforgiving trees lining the side of the road... Only it's not so simple. Twinning the stretch from Castle junction to Lake Louise would likely cost between $40 and $45 million, and involve a major interchange at the Icefields Parkway. It would likely lead to an environmental battle. When the stretch of highway between the Sunshine turn-off and Castle junction was built, the $32-million project caused an uproar among environmentalists, who rightly stated the twinning destroyed important habitat. It is regarded as one of the worst stretches of highway in western Alberta, the scene of hundreds of accidents each year. In winter, it often becomes a death trap for speeding drivers and in summer, an area prone to collisions with wandering wildlife.

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