PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. — A committee has been set up to guide the development of northern Saskatchewan’s transportation network, the province announced today.

The Northern Transportation Advisory Committee met for the first time today and plans to advise government on how to develop a comprehensive northern transportation strategy. The committee will also be charged with identifying and ranking potential upgrades to northern highways.

The system will be modeled after Saskatchewan’s existing Rural Highways Strategy, the province noted.

“We have had considerable success in addressing the infrastructure challenges in rural Saskatchewan by working in partnership with key stakeholders to develop a transparent and consistent system for prioritizing transportation investments,” Highways and Infrastructure Minister Jim Reiter said. “We will repeat this success in the north by developing a similar system that recognizes the unique circumstances of northern Saskatchewan and balances the demands for investment in both key economic corridors and community access roads.”