(Image Credit: Tjrun262/Dreamstime.com)

By Jett Schwaier

Highway 3 Twinning Development

$152M in Budget 2026 supports Highway 3 twinning

Feb 28, 2026 | 12:05 AM

The Highway 3 Twinning Development Association is welcoming a $152-million commitment in the Government of Alberta’s 2026 budget to twin a 36-kilometre stretch of Highway 3 between east of Bow Island and Medicine Hat.

The funding, committed over three years in the province’s 2026–29 Capital Plan, will support twinning from Whitla to Medicine Hat, advancing work on one of the remaining two-lane segments of the southern Alberta corridor.

The Highway 3 Twinning Development Association is a member-driven regional advocacy group focused on securing planning, funding and completion of full twinning along Highway 3.

Chair of the Highway 3 Twinning Development Association and Bow Island Mayor, Gordon Reynolds, said the investment recognizes the highway’s role in safety, commerce and regional connectivity.

Reynolds said completing the Bow Island–Medicine Hat segment will reduce collision risks, improve freight movement and strengthen economic opportunities across the region.

What's On

Here is what's on this weekend in Medicine Hat: February 27-March 1

Feb 27, 2026

Showcase

Activity Expo this Sunday at the Medicine Hat Mall

Feb 26, 2026

What's On

Here is what's on this weekend in Medicine Hat: February 13-16

Feb 13, 2026

Highway 3 serves as an east–west corridor across southern Alberta, linking agriculture, energy, tourism and manufacturing industries to support the movement of goods and people across provincial and international borders.

Tenille Miller, the association’s director of advancement, said the funding reflects coordinated advocacy efforts by municipalities, regional leaders and residents to keep the project a provincial priority.

Southern Alberta Regional Director of Alberta Transportation, Darren Davidson, said the three years of funding are identified in the budget, but construction timing will depend on right-of-way acquisition and utility coordination.

Davidson said construction is expected to proceed once those steps are complete, though timelines have yet to be determined.

The association said completing the twinning will separate traffic flows, improve safety and reliability, reduce travel times and bolster long-term economic growth in southern Alberta.