Alberta ‘Convoy to Coutts’ expected to delay highways: RCMP

Alberta RCMP say commuters can expect delays driving across the border on Saturday, which is the anniversary of the Coutts border blockade that snarled roads for weeks.

So-called “Freedom groups” are organizing a “Convoy to Coutts” to mark the one-year anniversary of the border blockade and the convoy arriving in Ottawa.

Poster of the “Convoy to Coutts & Fundraiser” that will be on Jan. 28, 2023. (Calgary Freedom Central, Facebook)

Milk River RCMP say there could be delays or disruptions along Highway 4 from Lethbridge to Coutts anytime between 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Mounties say they will be on the scene to ensure the impact to travellers will be minimized.

However, police didn’t enforce traffic laws for several weeks in 2022 while the protesters parked on the highway blocking the border.

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Lethbridge RCMP say the convoy is expected to travel northbound on Howe Road/Range Road 211, turning westbound on Jail Road, then going northbound on 43 Street, and then proceeding westbound on 5 Avenue North “ending along the 3200 block” in the city.

The poster says that the convoy meeting points are Claresholm and Fort Macleod, which will end the day in Lethbridge for an afternoon barbecue.

It’s unclear how many people will appear, but around 500 people in a truck convoy showed up to Lethbridge court in November to offer support for three men that were charged in the Coutts blockade.

Ottawa expects a similar convoy to appear for the anniversary of the “Freedom Convoy,” with the Parliamentary Protective Service expecting around 500 people to show up.

-With files from The Canadian Press