The St. John’s Board of Trade has written Prime Minister Mark Carney, saying the decision to reduce passenger rates on Marine Atlantic falls “significantly short of what is required.”
The Prime Minister announced support for commercial traffic on the Confederation Bridge and Eastern Canadian Ferry Services, but commercial rates on Marine Atlantic were frozen and not reduced.
Sixty-five per cent of all goods and 90 per cent of the province’s perishable goods arrive in the province via the constitutionally mandated extension of the Trans Canada Highway.
Even more concerning, according to the board, is the absence of a strategy or funding to ensure that Marine Atlantic has the capacity to meet current and future demand. It says without action to expand and modernize the ferry fleet to add capacity, the recent passenger fare reductions offer little real benefit to people and businesses who face limited availability, service delays and supply chain disruptions.