Hi, ANL-

Yes, this *is* good news, as far as it goes. I suspect that these "upgrades" are to counter the increased temperatures and milder winters that have been drastically shortening the time span during which the winter road is useable. My recollection is that over the past 3 years or so the usable period was down to as little as 4 weeks, and the remote tribes were very concerned about getting their communities resupplied. In the cited article, "up to 4 months depending on weather" is the critical quote.

The all-weather road is what's needed, the sooner the better.