Volker Stevin Highways provides winter maintenance services on approximately 30% of the provincial highway network in the province of Alberta. That’s about 18,500 lane kilometers! In order to meet the harsh demands of Alberta winters, Volker Stevin utilizes a large variety of equipment including plow trucks equipped with two-way front mount plows, left and right-hand wings, pre-wetting systems, anti-icing systems, Automated Vehicle Location Systems (AVLS), and some of the most advanced spreader control systems available in the industry today.  Employing a fully trained, and experienced staff operating out of 38 maintenance yards in Alberta, Volker Stevin Highways is able to ensure that provincial service level requirements are not only achieved, but exceeded.

Plowing & Stacking

Volker Stevin Highways has 38 maintenance shed locations across our Contract Maintenance Areas (CMA’s), and the North East portion of the Anthony Henday Drive which surrounds Edmonton. There are two main repair facilities supported by several mobile equipment technicians strategically placed at some of the larger maintenance yards.

Over 200 VSH plow trucks will see 60,000 hours of plowing, and sanding time annually. This does not include the efforts of graders, snow blowers, dozers, and hi-hoes that are also required at times to combat the winter storms. Some of these services are sub-contracted by VSH to local businesses in their respective communities.

Following established road patrol schedules based on traffic volumes, Volker Stevin Highways performs road patrols on all of the 18,500 lane km’s of road it is responsible for. During these road patrols, Volker Stevin Highways maintenance operators are not only checking, and observing the road surface for any hazards or repairs required, they are also checking all of the appurtenances within the provincial right-of-way. All of these observations are documented allowing for proper management, and scheduling of work to take place. This process of follow-up maintenance repair activities ensures repairs are conducted in a timely, and cost-effective manner. Our maintenance program also results in extending the life, and investment of public infrastructure, and while enhancing safety by completing repairs before they become a hazard to the public.

Volker Stevin Highways is responsible for the repair, replacement, and maintenance of all road signs and their support structures within the provincial highway right-of-way, canals, and provincial parks in Southern Alberta. During scheduled road patrols any signs, and their support structures requiring repairs or adjustment are documented with scheduled work orders. Each of the 38 maintenance facilities stock an inventory of commonly used signs, and support structures allowing quick reaction time for most repairs when required. Throughout the winter months between winter storm events, our crews also wash the signs to increase visibility, and safety for travellers.

Avalanche Sign Project HWY 93 in Banff and Jasper National Park

During the fall of 2020 and 2021, in order to warn the public of Avalanches on Hwy 93 in both Banff, and Jasper National Parks, 173 Avalanche, and other public warning signs were installed. Working in the National parks allowed us to experience the beauty mother nature has to offer. With this beauty also came challenges that had to be overcome such as narrow/tight roadways, very strict environmental regulations, working in remote locations, and being able to mobilize, and use heavier equipment in certain locations. Managing these challenges, and implementing control measures where required resulted in a successful project.

In order to manage and control the vegetation in the right-of-way alongside provincial highways, canals, and inside Alberta’s provincial parks, Volker Stevin Highways performs mowing and trimming, weed spraying (where appropriate), and brush control as required. These vegetation control measures are completed to help manage weed growth, and to ensure that the safety of the public is not compromised by visibility restrictions.

Mowing

Annually, Volker Stevin Highways will mow the equivalent of 38,376 football fields all resulting in positive benefits for our communities. This keeps the vegetation height down to improve sight lines, reduces the amount of drifting problems in the winter months, and eliminates the transfer of weed seeds to other areas. Through the administration of Hay Permits, local residents can mow their ditches to get feed for their livestock.

Hundreds of thousands of people expect to travel safely every day on the highways VSH maintains. When there are disruptions to the normal flow of traffic, it is imperative that proper Traffic Accommodation Strategies (TAS) are developed, and implemented to keep the travelling public safe. Having in-house expertise, and pre-approved TAS, we are able to respond efficiently, and safely to the wide variety of situations that may present hazards to the travelling public (ex. work zones, accidents, floods, fires etc.).

Our work also includes TAS for movie sets.

Due to the vast scope of terrain, and beautiful landscape in southern Alberta, many movies, and commercials have been filmed here over the past two decades. With many of these movies filmed in areas with large traffic volumes, Volker Stevin Highways has been instrumental in keeping movie crews safe while filming is taking place. With in-house design, and experience Volker Stevin Highways is able to design and implement proven Traffic Accommodation Strategies, and detours in order to keep commuter traffic moving safely.

Some of the movies and commercials our Traffic Accommodation team has supported include;