The Northumberland Strait Crossing Project

On October 7, 1993, the agreements between the Government of Canada led by the Minister of Public Works and Government Services and the Private Sector Consortium Strait Crossing Development Incorporated (SCDI) were signed in Toronto, Canada. These agreements committed the Developer SCDI to finance, design and build a bridge between Tormentine, New Brunswick and Borden Prince Edward Island by May 31, 1997 and to operate and maintain the facility for a period of 35 years. The Government of Canada, in return, pays an annual subsidy, starting in 1997, which is estimated to be the future cost to Canada of the ferry service. The developer is also permitted to charge tolls for the 35-year operating period. The subsidy is supported by Federal legislation Bill C-110 and as well the Federal Government proposes to amend the terms of Union of Prince Edward Island with Canada to allow the developer to charge user fees and, to give substance to the Federal Provincial Agreement. This project is expected to have a useful service life of 100 years with the benefit of the last 65 years accruing to the public of Canada. This paper describes the (1) historical background and setting, the (2) competition, (3) measures for sound environmental planning and monitoring, (4) details of the main agreements, and (5) some of the socio-economic aspects of the project.