NS ponders new truck corridor to port

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia is calling for proposals from firms interested in studying the addition of a new trucking route along the rail corridor in peninsular Halifax.

According to the Chronicle Herald, Economic Development Minister Angus MacIsaac has revived the idea of building a truck-dedicated road alongside the 6.8-kilometre stretch of CN rail tracks leading to the Halterm container port.

MacIsaac said such the $80 million route would improve the transportation of goods to and from the port and make Halifax more competitive for container ship business. It could also reduce heavy truck traffic in downtown Halifax, he added.

The province is looking for funding from Ottawa, but there has been no guarantees from the feds. Ottawa has set aside $2.1 billion for Atlantic Gateway projects, however.

The downside, though, is that there may not be enough container volume to support a new route.

Container traffic was down 20 percent during the first half of this year, compared with 2007, which saw an 8 percent drop from the year before. Containers make up about 35 percent of the cargo handled by the port.

Dwindling container traffic at the port forced CN Rail to reduce its daily service from two trains to one longer unit.

A feasibility study would examine several factors, including the project’s total cost, possible economic benefits and environmental impacts.