FORT FRANCES – If you ask Mayor Andrew Hallikas, there should be no such thing as a cross-border toll bridge.
“We don’t think that that bridge should be in private enterprise, and that’s no reflection on those who bought it,” he said last week at the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association conference in Thunder Bay.
The century-old bridge is “a strategic asset” that should be government-owned, he said.
In the meantime, however, Hallikas said his town is working with other governments and the span’s owners for “short-term solutions” to keep bridge tolls affordable for local motorists.
The cost of a 12-crossing commuter card for two-axle vehicles tripled to $90, raising the hackles of Fort Frances residents who frequently cross the bridge to visit International Falls, Minn., on the other side of the Canada-U.S. border.
Fort Frances council passed a motion in mid-November calling on the federal government to negotiate the purchase of the bridge from Aazhogan LP, a partnership of the BMI Group and Rainy River First Nations.
A working group of people on both sides of the border has been established since then, Hallikas said.
“And by the way, our last meeting was hosted by Rainy River First Nations, which is co-owner of the bridge, and that speaks to their integrity. They were wonderful hosts,” he added.
“We had, I would say, a good two dozen people there in person and a good two dozen people online.
“And the entities that were represented (included) the City of International Falls, the Minnesota government and the American federal government.”
Provincial representation at the meeting included Kenora-Rainy River MPP Greg Rickford, Hallikas said, adding that Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP Marcus Powlowski also participated.
“So we had quite a collection of what I call unlikely cats herded together to deal with this issue.
“And what came out of the meeting was, first of all, a lot of goodwill and a lot of discussion.
“But we also set up two committees. We set up a short-term subcommittee and a long-term subcommittee.”
The short-term subcommittee is tasked with looking into “possible ways of lowering the toll,” he said.
The long-term subcommittee is looking into the feasibility of government buying the bridge or building a new one.
