Tolls to be removed from Halifax bridges 2 weeks early
Commuters will stop paying to cross the bridges as of 5 a.m. on March 17
Tolls on Halifax's two harbour bridges are set to come off two weeks ahead of schedule.
A news release from the provincial government says the Angus L. Macdonald and A. Murray MacKay bridges will stop collecting tolls as of 5 a.m. on March 17.
"This is great news for commuters, and we're proud that we're delivering on our election promise of removing the tolls," Public Works Minister Fred Tilley said in the statement.
"It's one less fee to pay when getting where you need to go, and more money back in the pockets of Nova Scotians."
Removal of the toll plazas will begin this month, with work starting at the Macdonald Bridge first, beginning on March 14. Work at the MacKay will follow and will spill into mid-April.
At Province House on Thursday, Tilley said removing the toll plazas is a big job, and so it was decided the tolls would be removed as the plazas come down on the Macdonald Bridge.
"It's in safety. We want the toll booths down so that when people are going through areas, it's clearly marked, they know the way that they have to go through," he said.
The transition to free-flowing traffic also includes removing concrete barriers and electrical equipment, resurfacing roadways and reconfiguring lanes.
Public Works has posted a video explaining how traffic will flow on the Dartmouth side of the Macdonald Bridge.
Tolls have been in place since the opening of the Macdonald Bridge 70 years ago.
Halifax Harbour Bridges brought in about $36 million in toll revenue in 2024.
The province is spending $15 million this year for an operating grant to the bridge commission, which will become a new Crown corporation, and $86 million for capital repairs.
The Nova Scotia government is also making a one-time addition of $300 million to the provincial debt to account for taking over responsibility for the bridges.
More than 200,000 Nova Scotians have MacPass accounts — the system used to pay tolls through a transponder — and balances will be refunded in the coming weeks.
MacPass Plus is no longer an option to pay for parking at Halifax Stanfield International Airport.
