After years of advocacy, Winkler City Council can finally set speed limits without oversight from the Province.

Winkler had undergone numerous back-and-forth debates with the now-defunct Highway Traffic Board over speed decreases that Mayor Martin Harder noted stemmed from safety concerns. The issue came to a head last year over 15th St. which borders numerous sports fields, a skate park, and popular walking paths. The city wished to decrease the limit from 70 km/h to 50 km/h.

After months of debate, Harder eventually brought the issue forth at AMM, lobbying the government to scrap the oversight board altogether. He says it was gratifying to see real change happen, not just for Winkler, but for the entire province. "What's good in one community is good in all communities."

However, Harder says eliminating this particular red tape was a long hard road. "I do work in the long term and I get impatient, but I stick with it rather than getting frustrated. This is certainly one where I saw so many benefits and I was so pleased it's come to fruition."

"Municipalities... will thank the Province for this opportunity to be able to dispose of some red tape that was really an aggravation for most communities."

With so many young families in the Orion Lane area, the city expects to lower speeds on the narrow street to improve pedestrian safety. Harder says they hope to have the speed adjusted from 50 km/h to 30 km/h before summer.

Passed last June, the Traffic and Transportation Modernization Act dissolved the Highway Traffic Board. Now municipalities are free to set speed limits on their own roads. The new regulation goes into effect March 1.

As part of the changes, the Manitoba government is opening up a 30-day online public consultation.

"We have taken a leading role in modernizing the way government operates," Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler says. "We are reviewing dated regulations, policies and processes, and consulting key stakeholders because we want to hear from the public to ensure that onerous and outdated regulatory requirements impacting Manitobans are eliminated while keeping public safety at the forefront."