P.E.I. tourism businesses still waiting for blue directional signs

Seventeen businesses across P.E.I. are still waiting for their blue tourism directional signs and the province's sign shop is waiting for the aluminum to make them.

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"We're experiencing a delay in delivery of our aluminum sign blanks that we use in the tourism directional signage program," said Alan Aitken, traffic operations engineer with P.E.I.Transportation, Infrastructure and Energy.

"There are 17 businesses awaiting signage, 31 signs in total."

Sign ban

The Highway Signage Act, under the department of tourism, allows only the blue signsoff-premise alongIsland highways. The legislation is meant to prevent a cluttered landscape and driver distraction.

Any other kind of off-premise road signs have been illegal on the Island for more than two decades.

Only businesses defined as a "tourism business" in the regulations are allowed to have the signs. Operators pay $160 for a new sign, $100 for a wording change on an existing sign and an annual renewal fee of $60 per sign, plus HST.

"This program's in place to direct tourists to businesses," Aitken said.

Aitken says the sign shop has been waiting for a while.

"We do an inventory at the end of March and determine what product we might need and at that time, early in April, we put the order in," said Aitken.

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Aitken doesn't think the delay in delivery is related to the current trade war involving steel and aluminum between the Canada and the U.S.

"Not that we're aware of," Aitken said.

"This order was put in place in advance of any issues relating to the trade wars."

Aitken hasn't heard from any tourism operators himself.

"I haven't directly but I'm sure they are eager to see the signs being erected," Aitken said.

Aitken is hoping some of the blue signs will be heading out to Island highways later this week.

"The shop is ready to produce the signs so once the blanks arrive, hopefully early this week, they should be shipped out soon to be erected," Aitken said.

"They will be a priority."