WINNIPEG—Prime Minister Stephen Harper today welcomed the completion of a new four-lane expressway in Winnipeg that will connect CentrePort Canada, Manitoba’s inland port, to the core national highway system.

This new expressway, according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s office, will be known as CentrePort Canada Way.

“Our Government is committed to providing Canada’s cities with the infrastructure they need to flourish,” Harper said. “I am pleased to be here today to celebrate the completion of CentrePort Canada Way. This new expressway will increase commercial flows through Winnipeg and the region, and will enable the city to take advantage of the government’s unprecedented efforts to expand Canada’s access to new global markets.”

The CentrePort Canada Way project consists of a new 9.1-km four-lane divided roadway and associated structures and interchanges.

Construction began in the spring of 2010, and the expressway officially opens to traffic today.

The new expressway is designed to provide better, more efficient flows between CentrePort Canada and nearby assets – such as three rail carriers, an international trucking hub, and Winnipeg’s James Armstrong Richardson International Airport.

CentrePort Canada, Manitoba’s inland port, is a tri-modal transportation hub with businesses that focus on importing and exporting goods from Asia and Europe, and distributing those goods throughout North America by air, rail and road.

This expressway is designed to help Canadian businesses in the region have better market access to the rest of Canada, Europe, Asia and the U.S.A.