It has been well over 25 years since Monty Python put out their last piece of original material.
However, for those who long for the type of farcical comedy produced by the British comedy troupe, they don't have to look much further than the ongoing saga of the heavy truck bypass around Estevan.
Sadly, what started out as the most positive of ideas has evolved into a running joke that might be funny if it didn't have such major implications for our city.
Although it has been roughly five years since the first mention of a bypass, there has been little in the way of tangible progress. Unfortunately the project has been bogged down by one squabble after another, many of which could have been avoided if the parties involved had employed some common sense and foresight.
The first major hurdle revolved around where the bypass would intersect with Highway 39. The initial design called for the intersection on the west side of Estevan to be located at the turn to Rafferty Dam, which is also very near the intersection for the Pioneer Grain Terminal.
It didn't take a traffic engineer, or much less a reporter, to spot a potential problem. With the absence of an overpass, which has never been part of the plans, that intersection was an accident waiting to happen given the amount of traffic in that area. Fortunately the design was changed. Unfortunately, it took over a year, and most likely not an insignificant amount of money before the change was made.
There have been other contentious points as well such as the lack of the aforementioned overpass or something of the like.
The latest issue is the procuring of the land needed for the bypass. As has been reported in these pages, the provincial government and landowners along the bypass have been locked in a disagreement over how much said land is worth.
Naturally, the province, which is spending taxpayers dollars, is trying to get away without spending a fortune for the land. Conversely, the landowners are trying to get top dollar for their property.
That both sides are acting in their best interests isn't the frustrating aspect of this dispute. What makes one scratch their head is how this was allowed to get to this point and become a matter that has delayed the start of the project.
Was no previous legwork completed? The general route has been known for years, so it stands to reason some preliminary contact could have been made to smooth over the process. It might have given them a better idea on what prices the landowners were expecting to receive. We appreciate there are many layers to any deal such as this, but it seems with a little forethought the acrimony might have been avoided.
There is also the question of whether or not the landowners in the area are being reasonable with their demands. It's only human nature to want to cash in but they also have to be practical. No one is saying they shouldn't be compensated fairly, but they also shouldn't look at this as a chance to win the lottery.
Either way you shake it, a resolution needs to come soon. Our streets are getting worse by the day thanks to the increased heavy truck traffic. And with the announcement of a $90 million commodity hub in Northgate, the situation isn't going to improve.
It's time to stop the madness and get this project underway because no one is laughing anymore.
