Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program

The five-year Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program (SHIP) was created to renew and enhance Canada's highway infrastructure, focusing on projects of national scope.

In order to use this funding in the most strategic way possible, the program focuses, not only on highway construction projects, but also on innovative means to maximize the use of existing highway and related ground transportation systems.

The SHIP is composed of the following components:

1. $500 million for strategic highway construction improvements on the National Highway System (NHS); and
    
2. $100 million for national system integration initiatives, specifically:
    
   1. $65 million for improvements at or near border crossings.
       
   2. $30 million for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) initiatives; and
       
   3. $5 million for planning/modal integration studies .*

* These amounts include management, communications and evaluation costs.

Background Goals and Objectives

Background

As part of its commitment to maintain and improve quality of life for all Canadians, the Government of Canada has launched a new five-year program to renew and enhance Canada's physical infrastructure. The program will mobilize provincial, territorial, municipal, and private sector partners to address 21st century infrastructure challenges in rural and urban municipalities across Canada.

The October 1999 Speech from the Throne announced a new vision of 21st century infrastructure for Canada, including knowledge, information, cultural, and physical infrastructure. Budget 2000 provided $2.65 billion of funding for the physical infrastructure program. The program has two components: municipal infrastructure, called Infrastructure Canada Program, and a highway component, called the Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program (SHIP).

Goals and Objectives

The program has been designed to support the following long-term national objectives:

1. Improve the quality of life of Canadians by promoting safer and more environmentally sustainable transportation.
    
2. Support trade, tourism and investment in Canada;
    
3. Make the Canadian surface transportation system more reliable, efficient, competitive, integrated, and sustainable; and
    
4. Make Canada a leader in the use of innovative transportation and information technologies