Confederation Bridge crossing should be free, argues P.E.I. senator

Tolls on the Confederation Bridge between Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick should be eliminated, said P.E.I. Senator Percy Downe.

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He said the federal government plans to pay the full cost of a new $5-billion bridge in Montreal, and should do the same for P.E.I.

"At the same time we have a bridge in Prince Edward Island, partly funded by the government of Canada, and the difference made up by tolls, which are around $45 to $50 now," Downe said in an interview with CBC News: Compass host Bruce Rainnie Thursday.

"We need a uniform policy across Canada: tolls for some, or tolls for all, or tolls for none. Which is it?"

It currently costs $45.50 to cross the bridge, but the toll rises annually on Jan. 1.

Downe said Islanders understood when the bridge was built it opened in 1997 and cost about $1 billion that they'd have to help finance the bridge by paying tolls.

"It was a user-pay policy of the government of Canada," said Downe.

In exchange for the tolls, we take the risk on the structure. Michel LeChasseur, Strait Crossing Bridge Ltd.

But he said what's happened in Montreal is a "game changer" since the government is prepared to pay the entire cost.

"Good for them, but what about us?"

Downe wants more Islanders and organizations, including the provincial government, to pressure the federal government to recognize the disparity.

"Why are some Canadians getting infrastructure at no charge, and the rest of us have to pay?"

The Confederation Bridge was designed to last 100 years. Responsibility for its maintenance will revert from Strait Crossing Bridge Ltd. (SCBL) to Ottawa in 2032, 35 years from the bridge's completion.

'You cannot change the contract'

Strait Crossing manager Michel LeChasseur called Downe's suggestion "an honourable position," saying he understands people would prefer not to pay tolls.

But P.E.I. and Montreal aren't comparable situations, he said, because the Confederation Bridge replaced a ferry service in P.E.I.

He said SCBL needs the toll revenue to cover the cost of maintaining and operating the bridge.

"In exchange for the tolls, we take the risk on the structure, it's a huge structure," LeChasseur said.

"You cannot change the contract just like that."

LeChasseur argued there's actually a decrease in tolls every year, because the tolls are calibrated at only 75 per cent of the rate of inflation.

"It doesn't look like a break, but it is."

Strait Crossing has never revealed how much revenue it collects via tolls, saying it is a private business.