An oversized load as long as a football field and nearly as tall as a telephone pole is slowly crawling its way north from Edmonton to the heart of the oilsands.
The pressure vessel, called an evaporator, treats water for oilsands steam generators.
The 96-metre load started its week-long journey to a site north of Fort McMurray Sunday night and will spend Monday parked near the intersection of highways 14 and 21.
Drivers caught behind the load will experience delays, Alberta Transportation warned in a news release.
The load will move with pilot and escort vehicles and use the entire width of the highway, including the shoulder.
On some sections of the route, the load will be travelling against the flow of traffic, escorted by guide vehicles.
Lanes will be blocked off accordingly and drivers are reminded to watch for flag people.
The rig will set out for Two Hills on Tuesday morning then moving Wednesday to the visitor centre in Radway.
On Thursday the unit will move to the May Tower Rest Area on Highway 63.
The load is due to reach Fort McMurray around 5 p.m. on Friday.
