Tolls could be removed from Canada's longest bridge | Daily Hive

Federal government's tolls could be removed from Canada's longest bridge

Confederation Bridge. (OnePony/Shutterstock)

Both the federal Conservative and Liberal parties are promising to abolish the tolls to cross the Confederation Bridge between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island (P.E.I.).

With a length of nearly 13 km across the Northumberland Strait, this is the longest bridge in Canada, and the only fixed link that connects Prince Edward Island with the Canadian mainland.

Ever since it opened in 1997, all users of the two-lane bridge have had to pay a toll on the crossing.

Currently, tolls are set at $50.25 for vehicles with two axles, with an additional charge of $8.50 for each extra axle (applicable to heavy trucks and other commercial vehicles). Motorcycles are charged $20.

There are also fares of $4.75 for pedestrians and $9.50 for cyclists for a “self-serve shuttle service,” in which drivers transport their passengers across the bridge and then return.

You might also like:

The Conservative Party of Canada has made a clear platform promise to eliminate these tolls if they are elected to form the next federal government.

“Right now, far too many Canadians are barely making ends meet, struggling to afford gas, groceries, and home heating. We need to make life affordable again for Prince Edward Islanders and restore our country’s promise,” said Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman in a statement.

According to the party, this platform promise was made after Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre sent a letter to Prince Edward Island Premier Rob Lantz informing him of his promise to scrap the tolls.

As well, the party will review its support of the Wood Islands-Caribou ferry, which is an alternative crossing reaching P.E.I., but only operates for about half of each year when there is no sea ice.

confederation bridge prince edward island pei f

Confederation Bridge. (Mircia Costina/Shutterstock)

Liberal Party of Canada leader Mark Carney has also made a verbal promise to Lantz that his party’s forthcoming platform will include specifics on changing the tolls and ferry fares.

Sean Casey, the Liberal MP for the riding of Charlottetown, also wrote in a Facebook post last week that his party will be “committed to reducing the toll.”

On Monday, Lantz issued two separate statements, each in reaction to the promises provided by each party.

“After a productive day of meetings with Prime Minister Mark Carney, Minister Chrystia Freeland, and Minister Dominic Leblanc, I have a verbal commitment that Islanders will be receiving positive news on the Confederation Bridge and Wood Islands Ferry tolls in the coming days,” said Lantz.

On the same day, Lantz later added, “This morning, I received a letter from Pierre Poilievre confirming that he, too, would remove the tolls on the Confederation Bridge and would conduct a review of the federal government’s support for the Wood Islands Ferry. My request from day one has been clear: we need tolls on both the Confederation Bridge and Wood Islands Ferry to be eliminated.”

Confederation Bridge. (MollieGPhoto/Shutterstock)

According to Lantz, the tolls and fares on the only crossings between P.E.I. and the Canadian mainland put his province at a “competitive disadvantage,” especially under the threat of United States President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods.

Moreover, to mitigate the impacts of the tariffs, the federal government has been moving to reduce and eliminate interprovincial trade barriers. Carney has promised to have free internal trade across the country by Canada Day, July 1, 2025, while Poilievre has also made a similar internal free trade promise, starting with eliminating as many exemptions as possible within the first 30 days of office by bringing together the premiers.

“I’m confident that a review of the ferry service and funding will only reveal what we already know — it’s a critical link for commercial transportation and our tourism industry that’s been chronically underfunded — and that review will result in a clear recommendation to remove the tolls on the ferry as well,” continued the Premier.

To support a toll-free Confederation Bridge, the Conservative platform includes the commitment of a $50 million annual subsidy to cover the operating and maintenance costs of the crossing. Such costs are currently covered by tolls.

The federal government owns the bridge, but its construction in the 1990s was carried out as a public-private partnership. In addition to the construction project, the federal government provides the toll revenue to Strait Crossing Development to cover operating, maintenance, and other costs associated with the consortium. However, this 33-year concession agreement for the design, build, and operations will end in 2032, at which point the federal government will assume the responsibility of operating and maintaining the bridge.

Confederation Bridge. (Gareth Janzen/Shutterstock)

Confederation Bridge. (Elena Elisseeva/Shutterstock)

The bridge, a segment of Highway 1, is one of Canada’s most significant feats of engineering.

Construction took place in just under four years and at a cost of $1.3 billion ($2.5 billion in 2025 dollars).

Its design is made possible by the strait’s relatively shallow waters of up to 35 metres (115 ft), with 62 piers sitting on the bedrock seabed of the strait. These piers were also specifically engineered to withstand the strait’s exceptionally strong tidal currents, storm wave action, high winds, and the sheer force of moving sheets of ice each winter season. It is one of the world’s longest bridges of its kind, with a multi-span balanced cantilevered design and a post-tensioned concrete box girder structure.

Most of the bridge deck is 40 metres (131 ft) above water to enable ships to pass through, and there is taller 60-metre (197 ft) span for the extra clearance of taller ships.

While the bridge goes across a great expanse, the views while driving (particularly for small cars) can be limited. The two vehicle lanes — one lane in each direction — are protected by tall concrete barriers on either side of the bridge deck to protect vehicles and cyclists from the strait’s high winds. When steady winds of over 70 km/hr and gusts of 85 km/hr are recorded, the bridge is temporarily closed.

Each trip across the bridge takes roughly 10 minutes, with a speed limit of 80 km/hr in optimal weather conditions.

P.E.I. is the smallest province in terms of both land area and population, with about 179,000 people living on the island as of early this year. Prior to the pandemic, the bridge saw average traffic volumes of about 5,000 vehicles per day.

Confederation Bridge. (Emily Vardy/Shutterstock)

You might also like: