The Municipality of Rhineland is getting $138,500 in provincial funding to spend on roads and other infrastructure this year.

The money is part of the Manitoba government's recent contribution of an extra $10 million in unconditional operating funding to rural municipalities to help support critical infrastructure needs like roads and bridges.

Reeve Don Wiebe says the funds are a welcome addition to the municipality's budget. In 2017 the Municipality of Rhineland was given $225,000 in provincial infrastructure funding. That amount dropped to $77,000 in 2018.

"One of the good things is this becomes more of a basket funding (model) and it looks like it will be stable, long term funding so that will be good," explained Wiebe. "It allows us to do long term planning and put the money where it's most needed."

Initial discussions have Council considering applying these dollars to the municipality's priority grain roads network but Wiebe says no final decision has been made.

"There are a number of many other roads that we have to keep in shape and, depending on the kind of year it was, last year it was quite dry and so we saved on our gravel budget but we'll see what this year brings."

An assessment of road conditions will take place as soon as the winter frost is out of the ground.