Highway 956, also known as the Garson Lake Road, is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....

. It runs from the Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

 border until Highway 155

Saskatchewan Highway 155

Highway 155 is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 55 near Green Lake until La Loche, where it becomes Highway 955...

. The highway is 44 km (27 mi.) long.

Highway 956 is meant to connect the community of La Loche to Fort McMurray, Alberta

Fort McMurray, Alberta

Fort McMurray is an urban service area in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada. It was previously incorporated as a city on September 1, 1980. It became an urban service area when it amalgamated with Improvement District No. 143 on April 1, 1995 to create the Municipality...

. Beyond the Alberta border, the same route continues as a 65-km winter road

Winter road

Winter roads are temporary highways carved out of snow and ice. They facilitate transportation to and from communities without permanent roads, and are commonly seen in isolated regions in Canada's north....

 going east until Alberta Highway 881

Alberta Highway 881

Alberta Provincial Highway No. 881 is a highway in the province of Alberta, Canada. It runs south-north in two sections, from Highway 13 in Hardisty to Highway 55, then from Highway 55 in Lac La Biche to Highway 63 south of Fort McMurray. There is a break between the two sections, where Highway 55...

, about 25 km south of Anzac, Alberta

Anzac, Alberta

Anzac is a hamlet in northern Alberta, Canada within the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. It is located on Highway 881 along the east shore of Gregoire Lake, approximately southeast of Fort McMurray....

 and about 75 km south of Fort McMurray

Fort McMurray, Alberta

Fort McMurray is an urban service area in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada. It was previously incorporated as a city on September 1, 1980. It became an urban service area when it amalgamated with Improvement District No. 143 on April 1, 1995 to create the Municipality...

. This winter road is expected to be upgraded to an all-season road by 2009.

History

• Construction began in 1986 and completed in 1999.
• In 1999, as part of the Saskatchewan provincial budget, a project was begun to gravel 30 km of Highway 956.
• In September of 2005, to celebrate the centennials of Saskatchewan and Alberta, Saskatchewan Premier Lorne Calvert
  Lorne Calvert
  Lorne Albert Calvert, MLA was the 13th Premier of Saskatchewan, from 2001 to 2007. Calvert, was the leader of the Saskatchewan New Democratic Party from 2001 to June 6, 2009, when he was succeeded by Dwain Lingenfelter.In 1975, Calvert married Betty Sluzalo of Perdue, Saskatchewan. After attending...
  
   and Alberta Premier Ralph Klein announced a project costing $45 million to connect La Loche and Fort McMurray with an all-season road. The premiers explained that this would create economic and recreational opportunities, as well as improved access to services and schools.
• A crushing project and two clearing projects had been initiated by the time the 2006-2007 Saskatchewan Mid-Year Report was released. They were expected to be completed by the end of 2006.
• By May 2006, work began on improving Highway 956 as a joint project by the Alberta and Saskatchewan governments to connect La Loche and Fort McMurray.