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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The Deh Cho Bridge is scheduled to be complete next month, bringing an end to the Mackenzie River ice crossing, the Merv Hardie ferry, and for the city's business owners—an end to stockpiling.

Business development manager Jeffery Kincaid says the Yellowknife Direct Charge Co-op will save on costs to fly in fresh produce as the Deh Cho Bridge replaces the seasonal ice crossing and the sometimes uncertain operations of the Merv Hardie ferry with a year-round land link for the transportation of goods to the North. - Thandiwe Vela/NNSL photo

The bridge will bring year-round freight certainty to the city's gas stations, grocery stores and other commercial suppliers that have yearly stocked up on weeks worth of fuel and other goods during down times between the ferry and ice crossing.

Finishing touches, including asphalt surfacing and cable tensioning, are now being completed on the Deh Cho Bridge, according to Earl Blacklock, manager of public affairs and communications for the Department of Transportation, He said the Merv Hardie ferry will be shut down the day the bridge is opened to traffic--expected to be at the end of November.

"Almost everything that is brought here in terms of goods came over the ferry and now will come over the Deh Cho Bridge, so having all-weather reliability is certainly a very good thing. We won't be subject to the delays that are caused every year running the ferry," Blacklock said, citing low water levels, high water levels, ice conditions, freezing up of the channel, and mechanical issues among the problems that reduced the reliability of the ferry over the years.

"When we could plan for it, (the ferry) was OK," said Jeffery Kincaid, business development manager of the Yellowknife Direct Charge Co-op, which has always shipped the majority of its products over the ferry, but has a policy to fly in produce if there is an interruption with the ferry or ice crossing and inventory is low. "It was when the ferry went out with no notice, those are the times that were painful because we might have a truckload of perishable items just on the south side of the river, and at that point of time we're on the hook (to fly in). When we could plan for it, we could minimize our costs as best we could and only fly in if we had to."

While Kincaid is pleased that the Co-op will save the headaches of interrupted freight between break-up and freeze-up periods, and will save money on flying items in, annual shipping costs are not expected to go down for the grocery store, because of the toll costs of the bridge, compared to the toll-free ferry.

"For us at the Co-op, (the bridge) is not going to change our annual shipping costs but it's going to make our lives infinitely easier," he said. "Companies and businesses in town not used to flying in, will see an annual increase in shipping rates so if anything, it's going to be be more pressure on Yellowknife businesses to cover the cost of this toll. It's basically another tax on businesses in the North."

The $202 million bridge is to be paid off over time, with savings from the end of Merv Hardie ferry operations and tolls for commercial vehicles to contribute to the cost.

Tolls set for northbound commercial vehicles that are heavier than 4,500 kg are based on the number of axles on the vehicle. A single-use toll permit ranges from $91.25 for vehicles with two to four axles, to $291.25 for commercial vehicles with more than seven axles.

There will also be lower cost, monthly remittance agreements available instead of single-use toll permits.

The change in shipping costs for businesses paying the bridge toll who have previously relied on the toll-free ferry is expected to be neutral at worst, Blacklock said, considering the factors such as air transportation savings and stockpiling savings.

"In the end, it will be at worst neutral, and we anticipate people will actually save money over the years," Blacklock said.

For some, the ferry and the days of stockpiling will be missed with a year-round link to the rest of Canada.

"The preparation of how much gas to store for how long the break-up and what-not was going to be was always a challenge and kind of, a part of the North," said Roy Ferrier, owner of Gastown on Old Airport Road.

"There was always a lull in the break-up and in freeze-up and probably the lull will be missed but we'll carry on without it," Ferrier said, adding the certainty of the bridge is still good news for businesses in the North. "I don't know if there will be cost savings or not, but there will be a convenience and you know, what's the price of convenience?"

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