🚧 Crossroads

Together with

SiteJobs

Good morning! The pyramids are staying just the way they are. Egypt announced it is aborting plans to restore ancient granite cladding on one of the great pyramids of Giza. Over the centuries, pilfering, weathering and collapse have caused many of these layers to disappear, but officials say they would rather preserve the pyramid the way it is.

⏰ Today’s read: 4 ½ minutes

MARKETS

*Stock data as of last market close; currency, oil and crypto data as of 11:25PM ET February 19th, 2024.

Economy: New home construction in Canada fell by 10% in January compared to December, as fewer multi-unit urban homes, such as townhouses, were built, according to the country's national housing agency. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said Thursday that housing starts came in at 223,589 units in January, down 25,379 from December. Many economists had predicted there would be an increase.

THE BIG STORY

To spend or not: Canada at a crossroads

Should we really be spending money on roads? Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault doesn’t think so. He drew heavy criticism last week for arguing against large federal road infrastructure spending. Let’s break down Canada’s road infrastructure and what it means to the country.

What we have: Canada's publicly owned road network is over one million km in length. Local roads are the most common, accounting for 58.6% of total road length and 69.5% of all municipally owned roads. 

How it’s used: Even ignoring the millions of people who use roads for personal travel and to get to work, roads are the preferred way to get stuff from one place to another. In 2017, 90% of the 72.9 million freight shipments in Canada were hauled by truck. Shipments by rail accounted for about 9% of the total, and shipments by air accounted for the rest.

How it’s going: Roads don’t maintain themselves. The 2019 Canadian Infrastructure Report Card found that nearly 40% of roads and bridges are in fair, poor or very poor condition, with roughly 80 percent being more than 20 years old.

When roads are gone: B.C. residents know what happens when roads go down. Damage to road infrastructure from heavy rains in 2021 crippled trade. Truck drivers were forced to take longer routes and storage space became saturated. Ship backlog peaked at 60 vessels and container traffic decreased by about 80%. Until safe connections could be made, $550 million a day of shipping activity stopped.

Fork in the road: With Canada growing at a historic pace and the vast majority of our goods moving by road, what should the federal approach be? Are there ways to reduce car use via public transportation, is it worth investing in a larger road system or are there other options? Reply to this email with your thoughts! 

NEED TO KNOW

The week's headlines

🏠 The Province of B.C. has launched BC Builds, a new initiative that leverages government, community and non-profit owned and underused land to build affordable housing projects. The program is supported by $2 billion in low-cost financing and a commitment of $950 million for the overall program.

⚒️ Enrollment in apprenticeships has surged from the lowest point during the pandemic to the highest level since 2014, data shows. Although new certifications are increasing, Statistics Canada noted that the growth is not uniform across the board. 

🏗️ Calgary’s development industry delivered a record high of 15,393 homes in 2023, an increase of 11% over 2022. Similarly, multi-residential homes increased by 49% and secondary suites increased by 43%. Despite this, officials say demand for housing still outpaces supply. 

🥂 Manitoba has greenlit a $900-million solar glass manufacturing facility project. Canadian Premium Sand plans to build it near Selkirk and has signed agreements with the Hollow Water First Nation. It will be North America’s only low-carbon patterned solar glass manufacturing facility.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

ROM reimagined

The Royal Ontario Museum has unveiled a comprehensive three-year construction initiative aimed at renovating the main floor and Bloor Street entrance. The architectural overhaul, spanning three years, will involve the installation of a spacious canopy and the incorporation of a floor-to-ceiling glass entryway at the Bloor Street entrance. The overhaul is expected to cost $130 million.

PROJECT UPDATES

• Groundbreaking marks new milestone for UFV’s Student Housing project

• Crews break ground on Vienna House

• Third cariboo road recovery project moves ahead

• Gardiner Expressway work to resume this spring

• STRABAG wins $255M Eglinton contract

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

LIST: 🚛 6 of Canada’s biggest equipment dealers

PHOTOS: World’s longest cantilever building opens in Dubai

VIDEO: ✈️ How Canada’s largest GC uses drone tech

READ: 🌿 Lafarge plant fully transitions to greener cement

TOP CONSTRUCTION JOBS

🔥 Check out all roles up for grabs right now at SiteNews Jobs or put your job post in front of tens of thousands of construction professionals here. Hurry up before our free trial ends!

Struggling to fill a role? send us an email at [email protected] to connect with one of our specialized recruitment experts.

ADVERTISE WITH SITENEWS

Get your message and brand in front of Canada’s construction leaders and decision-makers by advertising in our newsletter. Learn how to partner with us here.

Here’s to a great rest of the week!

*Disclaimer: SiteNews is an independently-operated news website. Views expressed are that of the editorial team and are based on publicly available information unless otherwise noted through sponsored content.