Transport in Saskatchewan includes an infrastructure system of roads, highways, freeways, airports, ferries, pipelines, trails, waterways, and railway systems serving a population of approximately 1,098,352 (according to 2016 census) inhabitants year-round. It is funded primarily with

local Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

rural municipality A rural municipality is a classification of municipality, a type of local government, found in several countries. These include: * Rural municipality (Canada), Rural municipalities in Canada, a Lists of municipalities in Canada, type of municipa ...

, and

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

government funds.

History

Early

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

settler A settler is a person who has human migration, migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a ...

s and

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

s in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

introduced the

wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

's Aboriginal peoples, who relied on

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the term ...

s, york boat, bateaux, and

kayak A kayak is a small, narrow watercraft which is typically propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle. The word kayak originates from the Greenlandic word ''qajaq'' (). The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each se ...

s, in addition to the

snowshoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footwe ...

toboggan A toboggan is a simple sled traditionally used by children. It is also a traditional form of transport used by the Innu and Cree of northern Canada. In modern times, it is used on snow to carry one or more people (often children) down a hill o ...

, and

sled A sled, skid, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle that slides across a surface, usually of ice or snow. It is built with either a smooth underside or a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners ...

in winter. Europeans adopted these technologies as Europeans pushed deeper into the continent's interior, and were thus able to travel via the waterways that fed from the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

route and

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay ( crj, text=ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, translit=Wînipekw; crl, text=ᐐᓂᐹᒄ, translit=Wînipâkw; iu, text=ᑲᖏᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ ᐃᓗᐊ, translit=Kangiqsualuk ilua or iu, text=ᑕᓯᐅᔭᕐᔪᐊᖅ, translit=Tasiujarjuaq; french: b ...

Churchill River route and then across land to Saskatchewan. In the 19th century and early 20th century transportation relied on harnessing oxen to

Red River cart The Red River cart is a large two-wheeled cart made entirely of non-metallic materials. Often drawn by oxen, though also by horses or mules, these carts were used throughout most of the 19th century in the fur trade and in westward expansion in Ca ...

s or horse to wagon. Maritime transportation was via manual labour such as canoe or wind on sail and utilized the

North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows from the Canadian Rockies continental divide east to central Saskatchewan, where it joins with the South Saskatchewan River to make up the Saskatchewan River. Its water flows eventual ...

South Saskatchewan River The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in Canada that flows through the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. For the first half of the 20th century, the South Saskatchewan would completely freeze over during winter, creating spectacular ...

routes mainly. Water or land travel speeds was approximately 8 to 15 kilometres per hour (5 to 9 miles per hour). Settlement was along river routes, and trade was locally concentrated initially on fur trading posts. Agricultural commodities were perishable, and trade centres were within 50 kilometres. Rural areas centred on villages, and they were approximately apart. The advent of steam railways and steamships connected resources and markets of vast distances in the late 19th century.

Automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with Wheel, wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, pe ...

and

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

travel was employed in the early 20th century with highways and roads being under construction. The roadways ran parallel to the rail lines. The auto was abandoned in the depression years of the

dirty thirties The Dust Bowl was a period of severe dust storms that greatly damaged the ecology and agriculture of the American and Canadian prairies during the 1930s. The phenomenon was caused by a combination of both natural factors (severe drought) an ...

, and cars were towed by horse and became known as Bennett Buggies. The years following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

showed much growth as the social economic lifestyle of Saskatchewan changed considerably. Gone were the farmers on each quarter section, and also leaving the

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

landscape were elevators. Grain storage elevators used to be required every 6 miles for loads by horse and cart. Combines introduced large scale farms, trucks introduced larger centres with a larger quantity of elevators. In the 1940s the branch rail lines were not economically feasible, were abandoned, and soon disappeared. As farms increased in size township roads and road allowances became part of the field.

Trails

Historically buffalo and Red River cart trails criss-crossed the prairies.

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

fur traders and brigades would follow these trails freighting supplies for the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

. Originally following trails created by bison, trails connected together trading posts,

North-West Mounted Police The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) was a Canadian para-military police force, established in 1873, to maintain order in the new Canadian North-West Territories (NWT) following the 1870 transfer of Rupert’s Land and North-Western Territory ...

forts and barracks. The Dominion government

Boundary Commission Trail The Boundary Commission Trail was a trail in western Canada used by the North American Boundary Commission to survey the Canada–United States border starting in 1872. The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) also used the trail in their March West in ...

, the North-West Mounted Police

Red Coat Trail The Red Coat Trail is a route that approximates the path taken in 1874 by the North-West Mounted Police in their March West from Fort Dufferin to Fort Whoop-Up. Route description A number of highways in southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and A ...

, American–Canadian boundary trails, telegraph trail, railway trail, and rebellion trails were later trails. Due to the hard compaction of prairie sod, the remnants of this trail are still visible via satellite imaging to the trained historian eye. From

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

through to

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, was the famed

Carlton Trail The Carlton Trail was the primary land transportation route in the Canadian Northwest for most of the 19th century, connecting Fort Carlton to Edmonton along a line of intermediate places. It was part of a trail network that stretched from the Red ...

also known as the Saskatchewan or Edmonton trail. The trail went from

Fort Ellice Fort Ellice was a Hudson's Bay Company trading post operated from 1794 to 1892. First established on the Qu'Appelle River, the post was rebuilt in 1817 on the south bank of the Assiniboine. Another iteration of the post was built near the first i ...

east of the present Manitoba

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

border northwest to Fort Carlton, and followed the

, and onwards to Jackfish Lake and thence across the present

border.

Fort Qu'Appelle Fort Qu'Appelle is a town in Canadian province of Saskatchewan located in the Qu'Appelle River valley north-east of Regina, between Echo and Mission Lakes of the Fishing Lakes. It is not to be confused with the once-significant nearby t ...

, Prince Albert, and the territorial capital,

Battleford Battleford ( 2011 population 4,065) is a small town located across the North Saskatchewan River from the City of North Battleford, in Saskatchewan, Canada. Battleford and North Battleford are collectively referred to as "The Battlefords" b ...

were the main centres in the 19th century. From these extended a variety of trails as spokes extend from the hub on a wheel. This includes he 190 mile long (300 km)

Swift Current-Battleford Trail The 190 mile long (300 km) Swift Current-Battleford Trail was an important late-19th century transportation and communications link between settlements of Swift Current and Battleford - the result of a brisk trade, in buffalo bones which ...

, an important late-nineteenth century transportation and communications link between settlements of

Swift Current Swift Current is the fifth largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is situated along the Trans Canada Highway west of Moose Jaw, and east of Medicine Hat, Alberta. Swift Current grew 6.8% between 2011 and 2016, ending up at ...

and

The boundary survey trail was a wide trail cut through timber and brush by a surveying team marking the 49th parallel beginning between 1872 and 1874. In 1874, the North-West Mounted Police were dispatched to

Fort Whoop-Up Fort Whoop-Up was the nickname (eventually adopted as the official name) given to a whisky trading post, originally Fort Hamilton, near what is now Lethbridge, Alberta. During the late 19th century, the post served as a centre for trading acti ...

. They travelled through the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to the Manitoba border, and from there were to follow the boundary survey trail to Fort Whoop-Up. There actual route extended through

Roche Percée Roche Percée ( 2016 population: ) is a village in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within the Rural Municipality of Coalfields No. 4 and Census Division No. 1. The village is situated near the Canada–United States border just off of ...

, the Cypress Hills,

Ponteix Ponteix (, ) is a town in southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada, 86 km (53 mi) southeast of Swift Current. It is located on Highway 628 just north of Highway 13. History In 1908, Father Albert-Marie Royer from the Auvergne region in Fr ...

, and near

Medicine Hat Medicine Hat is a city in Southern Alberta, southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately east of Lethbridge and southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff, Alberta, ...

. 1875 marked the beginnings of the Telegraph Trail which was a wide trail from

Fort Pelly Fort Pelly was a Hudson's Bay Company fur trading post located in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The fort was named after Sir John Pelly, governor of the Hudson's Bay Company. The current village of Pelly, Saskatchewan, takes its name f ...

, to Fort Carlton, Humboldt, Prince Albert,

, and onwards to Edmonton. This was to be the initial stages for the transcontinental railway to travel through the more populated areas of the

fur trade The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

area and the

North-West Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

' capital, Battleford. The southern area of the North-West territories was deemed in Palliser's report to be a vast desert and unfit for human habitation.

Rail

The first

Canadian transcontinental railway A transcontinental railroad or transcontinental railway is contiguous railroad trackage, that crosses a continental land mass and has terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single ...

was constructed by the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

between 1881 and 1885. The first proposal was northerly through the Saskatchewan provisional district of the

to support the fur trade. The final established route was through the Assiniboia provisional district of the North-West Territories. Towns such as Moosomin, Qu'Appelle, Regina,

Moose Jaw Moose Jaw is the fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javians ...

, and

sprang up along the railway and became trade centres. The new economy saw grain and agricultural farming as a viable alternative, and

Clifford Sifton Sir Clifford Sifton, (March 10, 1861 – April 17, 1929), was a Canadian lawyer and a long-time Liberal politician, best known for being Minister of the Interior under Sir Wilfrid Laurier. He was responsible for encouraging the massive amount o ...

implemented a massive immigration policy in support of settling the West. The rail lines followed the established trails generally as the most practical method of travelling through the prairies. After the great east–west transcontinental railway was built, north–south connector branch lines were established. In 1885, the

Regina and Long Lake Railway The Qu'Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railroad and Steamboat Company (QLSRSC) was a railway that operated between Regina, Saskatchewan and Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Canada via Craik, Saskatoon and Rosthern. Augustus Meredith Nanton was an ...

connected Regina and Craven. The railway was eventually expanded north to Prince Albert. The Regina and Long Lake railroad or the Qu'Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railroad and Steamboat Company crossed the

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, ''Hub city'' in 1890. In 1907 the communities of Melville, ''The Rail Centre'', Watrous, and Biggar became

divisional point In Canada, a divisional point (or division point) is a local operational headquarters for a railway. Divisional points are significant in railway maintenance of way operations. Especially historically, they could be the location of facilities and in ...

s for the

Grand Trunk Pacific Railway The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was a historic Canadian transcontinental railway running from Fort William, Ontario (now Thunder Bay) to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, a Pacific coast port. East of Winnipeg the line continued as the National Tra ...

. Moose Jaw, dubbed ''Little Chicago'', was the northern terminus on the ''Soo Line'', which ran to Chicago, and provided a route during the prohibition years for alcohol freighting between Canada and the United States. The 1920s saw the largest rise in trackage as the

CPR Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore sponta ...

and CNR fell into competition to provide rail service within ten kilometres. In the 1960s there were applications for abandonment of branch lines. Today the only two passenger rail services in the province are ''

The Canadian ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' and the

Winnipeg – Churchill train Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, both operated by

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...

. ''The Canadian'' is a transcontinental service linking Toronto with Vancouver. Within Saskatchewan ''The Canadian'' calls at Melville, Watrous,

, Biggar, and

Unity Unity may refer to: Buildings * Unity Building, Oregon, Illinois, US; a historic building * Unity Building (Chicago), Illinois, US; a skyscraper * Unity Buildings, Liverpool, UK; two buildings in England * Unity Chapel, Wyoming, Wisconsin, US; a h ...

stations. The Winnipeg - Churchill train calls at

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

Kamsack Kamsack, Saskatchewan, Canada is a town in the Assiniboine River Valley, where the Whitesand River joins the Assiniboine River. It is northeast of Yorkton. Highway 8 and Highway 5 intersect in the town. Coté First Nation is located north an ...

, Veregin,

Mikado Mikado may refer to: * Emperor of Japan or Arts and entertainment * ''The Mikado'', an 1885 comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan * ''The Mikado'' (1939 film), an adaptation of the opera, directed by Victor Schertzinger * ''The Mikado'' (1967 f ...

, Canora, Sturgis, Endeavour,

Reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

, and

. There are nearly 1,734 km of short-line freight railways in the province. These railways are regulated by the provincial government, and include: *

Southern Rails Cooperative The Southern Rails Cooperative Ltd. (SRCL) is a Canadian short line railway company operating on trackage in southwest Saskatchewan. Southern Rails Cooperative was the first shortline railway to operate in Saskatchewan and operated as the first ...

(72 km) *

Carlton Trail Railway The Carlton Trail Railway is a shortline railway with its headquarters in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. It is operated by OmniTRAX, an American transportation company in Denver, Colorado. Carlton Trail has been operating on ex-Canadian National ...

(481 km) *

Red Coat Road and Rail The Red Coat Road & Rail Ltd. is a Canadian short line railway company operating on trackage in Saskatchewan. Red Coat Road & Rail Ltd. is a community owned short-line railways in Saskatchewan. The former Canadian Pacific Railway line from ...

(115 km) *

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

(496 km) *

Thunder Rail Thunder Rail is a short line railway located in the North East region of Saskatchewan, with its headquarters located in the community of Arborfield. The line came into being when Carlton Trail Railway decided to abandon the line due to its is ...

(31 km) * Wheatland Rail (74 km) *

Fife Lake Railway The Fife Lake Railway is a Canadian shortline railway company operating on trackage in Saskatchewan, Canada. The railway is owned by seven local municipalities. The Fife Lake Railway took over the former Canadian Pacific Railway Fife Lake subdi ...

(94 km) * Torch River Rail (45 km) * Great Sandhills Railway (187 km) *

Last Mountain Railway The Last Mountain Railway is a Canadian short line railway company and a subsidiary of Mobil Grain Ltd. LMR operates on trackage between Regina and Davidson in Saskatchewan, established in 2009. The trackage was formerly operated by Canadian N ...

(136 km)

Highways

The

Dominion Land Survey The Dominion Land Survey (DLS; french: links=no, arpentage des terres fédérales, ATF) is the method used to divide most of Western Canada into one-square-mile (2.6 km2) sections for agricultural and other purposes. It is based on the layout ...

system for homesteading provided for townships which were six miles square (). An iron post was driven into the ground at the north-east corner of every square. Road allowances were to the north and east of the iron monuments. By 1921, there were of road allowance in the province which began as dirt roads. A system began of improved and unimproved dirt, gravel, oil-gravel surfaced roads, and all weather paved roads and highways. Currently Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation operates over of highways and

divided highways A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

, over 800 bridges, 12 separate ferries, and one barge. There are also municipal roads which comprise different surfaces. Asphalt concrete pavements comprise almost , granular pavement almost , non structural or thin membrane surface TMS are close to and finally gravel highways make up over through the province. TMS roads are maintained by the provincial government department: Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation. In the northern sector,

ice road An ice road or ice bridge is a human-made structure that runs on a frozen water surface (a river, a lake or a sea water expanse).Masterson, D. and Løset, S., 2011, ISO 19906: Bearing capacity of ice and ice roads, Proceedings of the 21st Inte ...

s which can only be navigated in the winter months comprise another approximately of travel. Dirt roads also still exist in rural areas and would be maintained by the local resident. All in all, Saskatchewan consists of over of roads and highways, the highest amount of road surface compared to any other

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

. Roads need to be constructed for the hot summer months, as well as the frigid winter months. Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation seeks to provide an operational transportation system that ensures the safe travel of people and products within a vast province. Crack filling, snow and ice removal, pavement marking, signage, lighting, and infrastructure planning. The rural municipalities care for rural roads of which 97 per cent are gravel and the rest asphalt surface. Road transport provides short and long haul movement for both commercial freight and passenger traffic. Short haul traffic moving small volumes is an economically feasible method low cost method of freight hauling. The principal highways in Saskatchewan are the Trans Canada expressway,

Yellowhead Highway The Yellowhead Highway (french: Route Yellowhead) is a major interprovincial highway in Western Canada that runs from Winnipeg to Graham Island off the coast of British Columbia via Saskatoon and Edmonton. It stretches across the four western ...

northern Trans Canada route,

Louis Riel Trail Highway 11 is a major north-south highway in Saskatchewan, Canada that connects the province's three largest cities: Regina, Saskatoon and Prince Albert. It is a structural pavement major arterial highway which is approximately long. It is ...

CanAm Highway CanAm Highway is an international highway that connects Mexico to Canada through the United States. It travels along U.S. Route 85 (US 85) and Interstate 25 (I-25), passing through six U.S. states (Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Sou ...

Northern Woods and Water route The Northern Woods and Water Route is a route through northern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba in Western Canada. As early as the 1950s, community groups came together to establish a northern travel route; this was proposed ...

, and Saskota travel route. The

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

has agreed to contribute $20 million for two new interchanges in

. One of them being at the Sk Hwy 219 / Lorne Ave intersection with Circle Drive, the other at the Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge (Idylwyld Freeway) and Circle Drive. This is part of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative to improve access to the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

's intermodal freight terminal thereby increasing Asia-Pacific trade. Also, the Government of Canada will contribute $27 million to Regina to construct a Canadian Pacific Railway CPR intermodal facility and improve infrastructure transportation to the facility from both national highway networks, Sk Hwy 1, the TransCanada Highway and Sk Hwy 11, Louis Riel Trail. This also is part of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative to improve access to the CPR terminal and increase Asia-Pacific trade. As of 1946, the Saskatchewan Transportation Company (STC) was formed to provide inter city transportation services via highway bus service. The provincial government closed STC on 31 May 2017.

Urban transport

Urban, suburban, and interurban transport has included

streetcar A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

s, electric railways, electric trolleys (

trolley bus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...

es),

motor bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es, and motor coaches. The ''Saskatoon Electric Railway and Power Company'', ''Moose Jaw Electric Railway Company'' and the ''Regina Municipal Railway '', were electric railways, and were first operational in 1911. Regina stopped using the electric trolley buses in 1966.

's streetcar system closed in 1951, and its trolley bus system in 1974. The Saskatoon Transit System was renamed Saskatoon Transit Services in 1995.

Waterways

The main Saskatchewan waterways are the

routes. Early ferry service and steamship travel were employed on the major waterways. Barges for freight transfer have used the Athabasca River servicing

Uranium City Uranium City is a northern settlement in Saskatchewan, Canada. Located on the northern shores of Lake Athabasca near the border of the Northwest Territories, it is above sea level. The settlement is northwest of Prince Albert, northeast of E ...

, Fond du Lac,

Stony Rapids Stony Rapids ( chp, Deschaghe, translation=settlement on the other side of the Rapids) is a northern hamlet in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is located south of the border to the Northwest Territories, the community is astride the Fond du L ...

, and Black Lake. Wollaston Lake barge services

Wollaston lake Wollaston Lake is a lake in north-eastern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is northeast of Prince Albert. With a surface area of (excluding islands; if islands are included), it is the largest bifurcation lake in the world – that is, a lake tha ...

. As early as 1874 the SS ''Northcote'' travelled between

Grand Rapids, Manitoba Grand Rapids is a town in Manitoba, Canada, on the northwestern shore of Lake Winnipeg where the Saskatchewan River enters the lake. As the name implies, the river had a significant drop at this point (more than in less than ). In modern days, ...

and went as far west as

, Alberta, through Carlton House on the North Saskatchewan River. The ''City of Medicine Hat '' traversed the South Saskatchewan River waters near Saskatoon. Carrot River used steamships to aid in the logging industry.

Last Mountain Lake Last Mountain Lake, also known as Long Lake, is a prairie lake formed from glaciation 11,000 years ago. It is located in south central Saskatchewan, Canada, about north-west of the city of Regina. It flows into the Qu'Appelle River via Las ...

used steamships and was a main impetus for the formation of the ''Qu'Appelle Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway and Steamship Company (QLLR)''. The North West Navigation Co. had four steamships to aid in the fur trade industry, ''Princess'', ''Marquette'', ''Colville'', and ''Glendevon''. Winnipeg and Western Company's had three steamers, the ''Northcote'', the ''Marquis'' and ''North West''.

Ferry services

There are currently twelve ferry services operating in the province, all under the jurisdiction of the Department of Highways. In the 1920s through to the 1950s there were 36 ferries in operation, the highest number of ferries in the province. In the 1860s the Hudson's Bay Company built a river ferry near Fort Carlton on the North Saskatchewan River. 1871 saw the ferry crossing at ''Gabriel's Crossing'' near present-day St. Laurent Ferry. In 1883 a ferry on the Battleford Trail was able to provide crossing service for two red river carts across the South Saskatchewan River at Saskatchewan Landing. This ferry operated until 1953 when the second bridge was officially opened.

Bridges

Early corduroy log road bridges, and rail bridges were the precursors to vehicular traffic bridges. The Qu’Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway Company built a railway bridge in 1890 at Saskatoon crossing the South Saskatchewan River. Saskatoon is termed ''"The City of Bridges". By 1908, another two railway bridges were constructed in Saskatoon, the McDonald or CP Railway Bridge and the Grand Trunk or CN Railway Bridge. The Traffic Bridge, a

truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...

opened October 10, 1907, as the first vehicle bridge in Saskatoon.City History—Riveredge
Opening of Traffic Bridge, 1907.

North Battleford North Battleford is a city in west-central Saskatchewan, Canada. It is the seventh largest city in the province and is directly across the North Saskatchewan River from the Town of Battleford. Together, the two communities are known as "The Batt ...

and

Nipawin Nipawin () is a town in Saskatchewan, Canada, on the Saskatchewan River portion of Tobin Lake. The town lies between Codette Lake, created by the Francois-Finlay Dam (built in 1986) and Tobin Lake, created by the E.B. Campbell Dam built in ...

constructed railway bridges. The Ceepee bridge (later renamed the Borden Bridge) was built 1936 across the North Saskatchewan River between Saskatoon and the Battlefords. This bridge has been abandoned, and replaced. In south-west Saskatchewan, near Gull Lake,

, Scotsguard and

Outlook Outlook or The Outlook may refer to: Computing * Microsoft Outlook, an e-mail and personal information management software product from Microsoft * Outlook.com, a web mail service from Microsoft * Outlook on the web, a suite of web applications ...

are abandoned highway traffic bridges. In total, there are 3,050 bridges maintained by the Department of Highways in Saskatchewan.

Airports

Saskatoon featured its inaugural ''Air Harbour'' in 1913 near the exhibition grounds. The Hudson Bay Slough site established in 1922 became the site for the present airport. The ''Department of National Defence, Civil Aviation Branch'' requested the City of Saskatoon to establish an airport. Saskatoon Airport was part of the Department of National Defence during the years of

and an

RCAF The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environme ...

training school was established. Trans-Canada Air Lines began 1947. The Saskatoon Airport (YXE) was named the ''John G. Diefenbaker Airport'' in the official ceremony, June 23, 1993. ''Roland J. Groome Airfield'' is the official designation for the

Regina International Airport Regina International Airport is an international airport located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, located south-west and west-southwest of the city centre. It is run by the Regina Airport Authority. It was, in 2018, the 15th busiest airpor ...

(YQR) as of August 3, 2005. The Regina Flying Club sought to establish an airport as of 1927, and in 1930 the Regina Municipal Airport was constructed. Under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), twenty Service Flying Training Schools (RAF) were established at various Saskatchewan locations in World War II. Moose Jaw RCAF is home to the aeronautics team, the ''Snowbirds''. Airlines offering service to Saskatchewan are Air Canada, WestJet Airlines, Transwest Air, Norcanair Airlines, La Ronge Aviation Services Ltd, La Loche Airways, Osprey Wings Ltd, Buffalo Narrows Airways Ltd, Skyservice Airlines, Île-à-la-Crosse Airways Ltd, Voyage Air, Pronto Airways, Venture Air Ltd, Pelican Narrows Air Service, Jackson Air Services Ltd, and Northern Dene Airways Ltd.

Pipelines

Pipelines are part of the

energy production Energy development is the field of activities focused on obtaining sources of energy from natural resources. These activities include production of renewable, nuclear, and fossil fuel derived sources of energy, and for the recovery and reuse ...

and transportation network of Canada and, in this regard, may carry

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

natural gas liquids Natural-gas condensate, also called natural gas liquids, is a low-density mixture of hydrocarbon liquids that are present as gaseous components in the raw natural gas produced from many natural gas fields. Some gas species within the raw natur ...

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

synthetic crude Synthetic crude is the output from a bitumen/extra heavy oil upgrader facility used in connection with oil sand production. It may also refer to shale oil, an output from an oil shale pyrolysis. The properties of the synthetic crude depend on the ...

, or other

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

based products. The 1930s saw the first pipe line system in

Lloydminster Lloydminster is a city in Canada which has the unusual geographic distinction of straddling the provincial border between Alberta and Saskatchewan. The city is incorporated by both provinces as a single city with a single municipal administrati ...

Hiking trails in Saskatchewan

The

Trans Canada Trail The Trans Canada Trail, officially named The Great Trail between September 2016 and June 2021, is a cross-Canada system of greenways, waterways, and roadways that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, Pacific to the A ...

is a trail traversing every province across Canada. Across Saskatchewan are a variety of trails, hiking, cross country ski trails, and snowmobile or skidoo trails. Hiking or backpacking trails abound across Saskatchewan, the most notable is the hike into Grey Owl's Cabin within the

Prince Albert National Park Prince Albert National Park encompasses in central Saskatchewan, Canada and is located north of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Saskatoon. Though declared a National parks of Canada, national park March 24, 1927, official opening ceremonies weren't ...

Skytrail The SkyTrail Bridge spans the South Saskatchewan River in Outlook, Saskatchewan, Canada. It was originally built by the Canadian Pacific Railway over the full width of the river's flood channel and has eight spans. It served as a railway bridge f ...

, is Canada's longest pedestrian bridge which is located in the Outlook & District Regional Park. The Saskatchewan Trails Association brings together information for trail enthusiasts of all forms hikers, cyclists, horseback riders, skiers, ski-dooers, or canoeists. The Three Rivers Trail Association (TRTA) is developing interpretative trails between the Arm River, the

Qu'Appelle River The Qu'Appelle River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba that flows east from Lake Diefenbaker in south-western Saskatchewan to join the Assiniboine River in Manitoba, just south of Lake of the Prairies, near t ...

, and the South Saskatchewan Rivers. The

Meewasin Valley Authority The Meewasin Valley Authority is a conservation organization created by the Provincial Government of Saskatchewan in Canada and is dedicated to conserving the cultural and natural resources of the South Saskatchewan River Valley. The authority's ...

has constructed and maintained a series of walking trails along the South Saskatchewan River banks in Saskatoon.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transportation In Saskatchewan *

History

Trails

Rail

Highways

Urban transport

Waterways

Ferry services

Bridges

Airports

Pipelines

Hiking trails in Saskatchewan

See also

References

External links