Province promises changes at notorious intersection After dozens of collisions — and recent fatality — safety upgrades for Selkirk-area highways proposed By: Tyler Searle Posted: 6:16 PM CDT Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025

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The Manitoba government will answer a call for changes to an intersection north of Winnipeg that has been the scene of dozens of collisions over the years, including a crash that claimed the life of a teenager in May.

Luis Escobar, the director of traffic engineering for Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure, outlined a slate of safety improvements proposed for the intersection of Highways 8 and 67, near Selkirk, in a letter to Rural Municipality of St. Andrews council.

Officials in the area have, for years, asked the government to assess and improve the intersection. Highway 8 is frequently clogged with northbound and southbound traffic, leaving little time for motorists travelling east and west on Highway 67 to cross.

“We are thankful that they listened,” St. Andrews Mayor Joy Sul said, speaking by phone Tuesday. “We are hoping that they keep it fresh in their minds.”

The intersection has developed a reputation among residents for being dangerous — a belief that became further entrenched when an 18-year-old Stonewall man died after colliding with a tractor-trailer on May 21, Sul said.

The death prompted Coun. Justin Fiebelkorn to again write to the province for help.

Fiebelkorn, a captain with the St. Andrews Fire Department and a former paramedic, was one of the first people to respond to the collision.

“At this point, it is still a dangerous intersection. There is still potential for injury,” he said by phone.

“(The government) took our feedback, they understand the severity and the past incidents that have occurred at that intersection, so in terms of moving forward, this is in the right direction.”

MPI data, current up to May 26, showed the intersection was the site of 29 collisions since 2019. Of those, 11 crashes resulted in serious injuries.

The 18-year-old man is the only person to die there in the past six years, MPI said.

Sul credited the province for moving quickly to respond to safety concerns after the fatality.

“We had a meeting right after,” she said. “(The government) has all sorts of solutions they are coming up with.”

In the mid-July letter, Escobar listed a number of potential short-, medium- and long-term solutions for the intersection.

In the short term, the province will repaint faded road markings, refresh the intersection’s rumble strips and adjust the brightness of flashing beacons on Highway 67’s stop signs, Escobar said in the letter.

He also wrote the province would install posts along Highway 8 to help motorists attempting to cross the intersection better gauge the speed of incoming traffic.

“This is to deal with the visual problem of perception of speed. This installation will be done more carefully,” Escobar wrote.

Those changes will be completed before the end of the year, a provincial spokesperson confirmed Tuesday.

As part of medium-term safety improvements, the province will explore installing an “intersection warning system,” the letter said.

That proposal would involve a sensor system and flashing lights to help notify motorists on Highway 8 when other vehicles are stopped at Highway 67 and waiting to cross, the spokesperson said.

It would not control the flow of traffic, but would alert motorists travelling north and south of intersecting traffic. It could be especially helpful during periods of inclement weather and low visibility, Fiebelkorn said.

The province said the sensor system will operate as a pilot project and be installed as soon “as a suitable product is sourced.”

In the long term, the government is considering a “geometric redesign” of the intersection, the letter said.

The province did not provide details of any redesign options Tuesday, but Fiebelkorn said it has has floated several ideas to RM officials.

One possible option includes full redesign of the highways to include a roundabout. Installing such a feature would require altering how northbound and southbound traffic approaches the intersection, Fiebelkorn said.

Another long-term solution could involve the installation of a fourth lane on Highway 8 and a median, allowing crossing motorists to pause for traffic in the roadway, he said.

None of the ideas have been cemented and will require further review from provincial engineers, the councillor said.

Fiebelkorn said he asked about the potential for traffic lights to be installed and was told those may not be the most effective way to bolster safety.

“They were saying that (traffic) lights aren’t always a guaranteed fix for something, and it might not fix the problem,” he said. “Look at the Perimeter Highway and the number of accidents that happen at lighted intersections.”

The intersection of Highway 67 and Highway 7 — located about 15 kilometres west of Highway 8, near Stonewall — is controlled by traffic lights.

The data provided by MPI showed 30 collisions there since 2019, including five that resulted in injuries.

Fiebelkorn urged motorists travelling in his area to slow down and remain vigilant, as the community waits for the short-term safety measures to take hold.

The province has pledged to add passing lanes to Highway 8 along a nearly 54-kilometre section between Highway 67 and Provincial Road 231 in Gimli. The project was initially pegged to begin this summer and be completed in 2026.

The spokesperson said the government has awarded the construction contract to a company and work is now slated to begin this fall.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca