NWT appeals to Ottawa for Mackenzie Bridge cash

YELLOWKNIFE — Northwest Territories Premier Joe Handley says the much-hyped Mackenzie Bridge can’t be built if Ottawa doesn’t kick in $50 million.

The message, echoed by Deh Cho Bridge Company steering the project, is an attempt to get federal Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon to accept the proposed Mackenzie Bridge is part of the national highway system and good for all Canadians.

Even with a proposed $6 per tonne levy on commercial freight, the territory can’t handle on its own the estimated price tag, which has ballooned between $130 to $150. The $6 toll was based on costs of half that estimate.

Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce executive director Marino Casebeer says the bridge is only one factor for improving business efficiency in the region. A proposed, all-weather extension of the Mackenzie Highway to outlying communities and mines is also essential, he says.

“(The bridge and highway extensions) are not just our problem,” he told Northern News Services. “It affects the rest of Canada, so from our perspective the roads and infrastructure is part of the responsibility of the state.”

The highway extension down the Mackenzie Valley would link Hay River and the Arctic Ocean, making it the only public highway in North America to connect three different oceans.

The 1,800-km project, which includes a 900-metre bridge across the river at Fort Providence — would further open up the resource-rich valley and link the NWT more closely with industries in Alaska, B.C., and Alberta, proponents say.

— With files from Northern News Services.