'Burdened with that hurdle': Small businesses call on feds to ditch Confederation Bridge toll
CBC
When Joe Sawler started selling to businesses off-Island, he found himself taking short but expensive work trips across the Confederation Bridge.
The owner of JustJoes Automotive in Stratford, P.E.I., said he now finds himself parking in Cape Jourimain, N.B., unloading his truck, and then promptly pulling a U-turn for the return journey back over the 12.9-kilometre bridge.
"For that 30 minutes of time to cost $50 — it's tough," Sawler said.
The routine costs have Sawler throwing his support behind a recent effort from the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses to end the toll on the Confederation Bridge.
On Tuesday, the CFIB launched an awareness campaign dubbed "Free the Bridge," calling on federal officials and 2025 federal election candidates to "seriously consider" removing the $50.25 toll to leave the Island. (That's a round-trip fee; there's no charge for vehicles driving to the Island from New Brunswick.)
"It adds costs to all of our goods," Sawler said. "Whether it's tires or oils or pens or air fresheners — it all gets worked into it."
In a written statement, the CFIB said the new campaign focuses on the "inequity of continued tolls" on the Confederation Bridge compared to other major federal projects, such as the toll-free Samuel de Champlain Bridge in Montreal and Quebec Bridge between Sainte-Foy and Lévis in the Quebec City area.
In a written statement, CFIB senior policy analyst Frédéric Gionet was quoted as saying "Islanders are the only Canadians who must pay a significant toll to access their own province.
"This is effectively a tax on everything P.E.I.," Gionet said. "We're asking federal leaders to end this outdated policy and bring fairness to our transportation infrastructure."
In an email statement, Transport Canada said its agreement with Strait Crossing Development Inc. to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the Confederation Bridge gives the operator the right to collect tolls until 2032.
Transport Canada also pointed to an ongoing freeze that will keep the toll at 2022 rates until at least December 2026.
P.E.I. Premier Denis King's office said in an email statement that King has raised concerns about bridge and ferry tolls to the Prime Minister on multiple occasions, including an October letter urging an immediate reduction of the tolls to $20.
"The current toll to leave the province places significant strain on Islanders and the local economy," the statement said.
The bridge is the only way for vehicles to cross to and from the mainland when the seasonal ferry between eastern P.E.I. and Nova Scotia is not operating. That Northumberland Ferries service is currently out of commission due to a pair of ferry breakdowns in September, and there is doubt about whether it will resume before December.
As their role in health care continues to grow, nurse practitioners across Canada are looking to Alberta, where nurse practitioners recently formed their own union — but on P.E.I., the nurses' union that represents them says it's doing its job.
As the fallout over fallen buildings in Gore Park continues, Hamilton officials will be turning their attention to other properties.
Fire crews responded to a transport truck fire on the Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor and Detroit.
When the government touts that its auto insurance reforms might curb premiums by $400 come 2027, the ministers and premier don't readily mention what's to come in the three years leading up to that.
Who poses the greater threat to the free speech of Conservative MPs — the Speaker of the House of Commons or the leader of the Conservative Party?
As city council prepares to vote on a temporary shelter village for people experiencing homelessness in Thunder Bay, Ont., opposition is growing among the area's business community.
A Toronto centre for Black art is hosting an exhibition this weekend that exclusively features work by artists from across the African diaspora.
Click on the video player above on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. ET to watch the 2024 Vanier Cup.
This story is part of CBC Health's Second Opinion, a weekly analysis of health and medical science news emailed to subscribers on Saturday mornings. If you haven't subscribed yet, you can do that by clicking here.
Some Canadian seniors say they're feeling abandoned by the Liberal government's latest inflation relief measure after learning they don't qualify for it.
WARNING: This article may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.