A missing service

Manitoba has a problem. Actually it has a lot of problems but proper cell phone and internet service is a glaring one.

Many years ago, as in about 150 years ago, Manitoba, as it is today, was a land of opportunity. Farming was starting to take hold, the fur trade was still a major thing and people with vision said, “Look at all that space, all that land.”

Roads weren’t really roads but illkept trails along the river banks. By way of the rivers or lakes, you could use a canoe or a small boat. There was regular steamboat service from Winnipeg to Brandon and even further west prior to the railways. If you couldn’t get from point A to point B by river, you could always walk or ride a horse.

Opportunity was endless but access to opportunities was very limited. Building roads was an obvious answer and to this day, we are still building and maintaining roads, albeit some of them are in pretty bad shape. By the 1890s, railroads were an option, but an extremely expensive one. From the 1880s to the 1920s, towns clamoured for rail connection, a lifeline to opportunity, markets and access into and out of communities. Some communities went bankrupt in the mad rush to get a railroad connection. Railroads, at huge cost, became very efficient transportation. In the early 1900s, a person could make it by train from Regina to Winnipeg overnight and sleep on the way.

Once cars and trucks achieved acceptance and durability, the railways faded somewhat, but unlike the steam boats, they didn’t disappear. Back in the day when governments

Rita Friesen