![]() The new highway crosses coastal plains dotted with lakes and streams. But once the road opens, he said the destination becomes more important. Tours to Tuk are now billed as being a journey to an inaccessible locale. "I think as far as tourism goes, will open up a lot of doors," said Taylor. He typically brings in three groups a week during the summer, and his clientele, most of whom are retirees, make the trip by boat and by plane. Tourists wantedįor the past 10 years, Kylik Kisoun-Taylor has been running Tundra North Tours, a company that offers day trips from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk, among other packages. "We are going to do our very, very best to show Tuktoyaktuk as one of a destination point, but we have a lot of competition with other areas who are ahead of us," she said. Tuk's unemployment rate is 30 per cent, and with the highway likely not being the road to resources some hoped it would be, local officials are pivoting, trying to entice tourists to head north. But now that the work is nearly complete, people are wondering what's next. (NWT Department of Infrastructure)Ībout 400 jobs were created during construction of the highway. ![]() At the time, Prime Minister Stephen Harper spoke about completing the dream of "Macdonald and Diefenbaker" by building a road that would link Canada's three coasts.įormer NWT Premier Nellie Cournoyea, right, stands with two proponents of the new highway, including current Premier Bob McLeod, middle. In 2013, the federal government committed to paying two-thirds of the $300-million cost. The idea of a permanent road to Tuktoyaktuk has been bandied about for decades, and local leaders have persistently lobbied the territorial and federal government to fund it. If the highway is going to throw the gates open to the hamlet, many are asking: What will be the long-term benefit? Decades in the making The 30-minute flight to Inuvik can cost a few hundred dollars each way and prices for groceries are exorbitant, particularly for produce and perishable items.īut amid the excitement, there is a palpable unease about the kind of change the highway could usher into the community. Some feel Tuk's isolation provided protection from outside influences, like drugs and alcohol. In addition to the new sense of freedom, residents are hopeful that the road makes life in Tuk cheaper and more convenient. Demographically, Tuktoyaktuk is a young community, with 245 children under the age of 14.
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