Both major federal parties have committed to reducing Confederation Bridge tolls, Lantz says
No details yet on timelines or implementation, P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz says
P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz says both major federal parties have now committed to reducing or eliminating tolls on the Confederation Bridge.
On Monday morning, Lantz posted on social media that he had received a letter from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre stating that, if elected, his party would remove the tolls on the bridge between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.
Lantz said Poilievre also pledged to conduct a review of the federal government's support for Northumberland Ferries, which uses federally owned boats to offer seasonal transportation between eastern P.E.I. and northern Nova Scotia.
Within hours, the party's deputy leader Melissa Lantsman made that the first P.E.I. announcement of the election campaign.
Late Friday evening, after meeting with top government officials in Ottawa, Lantz said Liberal Leader Mark Carney had given a verbal commitment that Islanders would soon hear "positive news" about bridge tolls and ferry rates.
Lantz said the province's stance has been clear for years: P.E.I. wants to see tolls on both the Confederation Bridge and Wood Islands ferry eliminated.
"It's satisfying that our federal parties are finally recognizing the unfairness of P.E.I.'s bridge and ferry tolls and the competitive disadvantage they place on our province in a connected, trade-dependent economy," Lantz wrote on social media Monday.
"Under the threat of tariffs, it's time to remove barriers to trade."
Canadians will be heading to the polls on April 28, and the country's main federal leaders are kicking off their election campaigns.
The election comes a heated trade dispute is being waged between Canada and the U.S., fuelling discussions about reducing reliance on American trade. Many politicians and business leaders have called for stronger internal trade and the removal of interprovincial trade barriers — including eliminating tolls on the Confederation Bridge and Northumberland Ferries.
No details yet on federal commitments
Before receiving Poilievre's letter, Lantz had told CBC's Island Morning on Monday that no specifics had been provided regarding Carney's pledge.
Carney has said he and Canada's premiers have agreed to develop a national trade strategy and that if re-elected, his government intends to achieve free trade across the country by Canada Day.
Lantz said it's unclear whether that would include eliminating bridge tolls and ferry fares by July 1.
"It remains to be seen. It sounds like this commitment is probably a campaign commitment," Lantz told Island Morning.
"We hope that people live up to the commitments they make. This is politics, so I'll keep the pressure on and make sure that people follow through with what they've promised," the premier said.
Bridge tolls 'not fair'
The P.E.I. government has been arguing for some time that charging Island citizens and businesses to cross to the mainland by bridge or car-passenger ferry is unfair, especially since the Confederation Bridge that joins P.E.I. and New Brunswick is considered a continuation of the TransCanada Highway.
The round-trip toll for a standard two-axle vehicle to cross the Confederation Bridge is $50.25. For the ferry service, the round-trip fare is $86 for passenger vehicles up to 20 feet in length and 7 feet in height.
"I've done a lot of work on this, and the Confederation Bridge, as an absolute toll or as a per-kilometre toll, is one of the highest on the continent," the premier said. "It's not fair."
The devil is in the details, says senator
News of the federal government's commitment is being welcomed by P.E.I. Senator Percy Downe, who has been advocating for toll elimination for more than a decade.
"It looks like we're finally getting the results that we all want," Downe told CBC. "I think with the prime minister — and I suspect the Leader of the Opposition will both give their word — the promise will be kept."
Downe pointed to the Champlain Bridge in Montreal as an example, noting that in 2015, then-Liberal leader Justin Trudeau campaigned on a promise to remove tolls from that bridge. When the replacement Samuel De Champlain Bridge opened, tolls were indeed eliminated.
"I think the same thing will happen here," the P.E.I. senator said.
"The importance, of course, is that we also have to have tolls reduced on the Wood Islands ferry, given the importance of that to eastern P.E.I. and the economy of the region, so we need to see the details of what's being proposed."
With files from Island Morning