Mr. Speaker, I rise today to inform Members and the public that the Deh Cho Bridge will officially open on November 30th.
---Applause
The bridge represents a tremendous improvement in the level of service over the current ferry and ice crossing and will increase economic development in our territory both now and for the foreseeable future.
For the first time since the road to the North Slave region was built, people will not have to concern themselves with ferry schedules, ice conditions, or disruptions to operations when crossing the Mackenzie River at Fort Providence. The bridge will provide 24-hour access every day of the year. Children born today will still be using this bridge well into their retirement years.
We have used the ferry and ice bridge for so long, many of us do not even think about all of the issues that this operation created. Trucks idled, sometimes for hours, wasting gas and releasing greenhouse gases. Businesses in the North Slave region had to pay to stockpile food and other goods. Some of them even paid extra freight charges to airlift merchandise from Alberta or over the crossing. All of these costs were passed on to customers, and all of these costs are now gone. The ferry burned half a million litres of fuel every year. We had to develop emergency plans about what would happen if there was a fuel spill. We were vulnerable to climate change, with warming temperatures and changes in water levels.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to highlight a key decision of this Assembly, to provide the needed resources to accelerate construction and settle claims. This was critical in achieving the opening this year. Without additional funding, I would, most assuredly, be standing here today, announcing yet another year’s delay. This would have resulted in substantial direct and indirect costs and lost toll revenue.
On the subject of tolls, Mr. Speaker, the Department of Transportation is ready for collection of the tolls. Regulations governing the tolls have come into effect, we have completed information sessions with motor carriers, we are able to process toll permits and the electronic tracking system is fully operational. Carriers that choose to enter into remittance agreements with the department for payment of the toll will be able to submit their documentation on-line. This is the first on-line service as we upgrade our motor vehicle information system.
This project had its beginnings in the 14th Assembly, with the passage of the Deh Cho Bridge Act, and received the support of each Assembly that followed. I call on the Members of the 17th Assembly to continue to have a long-term vision for transportation projects that improve access for our communities, create economic development opportunities and provide lasting benefits for future generations. We need to look beyond our own doorsteps. We need to have a territory-wide approach to major public infrastructure that benefits all of us.
In conclusion, I would like to invite all Members of the Legislative Assembly and the public to attend the opening ceremonies on November 30th. It will be a grand celebration with the ribbon cutting at the north abutment of the bridge, a community feast, traditional spiritual offerings, fireworks and the final transit of the Merv Hardie. I hope to see you all there. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Premier McLeod.
