Should you pay to cross the Diefenbaker Bridge?
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Should Prince Albert’s Diefenbaker Bridge be tolled?
It’s a subject the city’s politicians were set to discuss Monday afternoon now that a report on the costs and potential revenues has been released.
Setting up the digital vehicle identification infrastructure would cost $1.3 million, and another $300,000 a year to maintain. There would also be a fee for the toll operator of around nine per cent of revenue. The report suggests revenues could be as high was $4.5 million each year if “a highly aggressive toll pricing structure” were to be used for all 24,000 vehicles that use the bridge each day. There are a total of nine million crossings each year.
Talk about the potential of a toll system has been underway for much of this decade, in light of the bridge’s limited lifespan, possibilities of increased heavy traffic in future and the limitations of the city having just one crossing, especially in an emergency situation. A toll fee for motorists could substantially boost the city’s coffers for future maintenance and for the construction of a second bridge.
