Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Aug 06/01) - The proposed highway toll will push the cost-of-living up, but not even the government has an accurate idea of the total impact will be.

Government estimates, however, based on average consumption and using historical transport data, indicate it will cost a family of three an extra $28 each year for gasoline, groceries and heating fuel in Inuvik and $19 in Hay River once the toll is introduced.

Much of the fuel shipped to Hay River comes in by rail. All but 10 per cent of the fuel shipped to Inuvik is barged in. Only the last 165 kilometres of the highway drive from the south to Inuvik is on NWT highways.

The government plans to introduce the toll next year, assessing it based on truck configuration and number of kilometres travelled on NWT highways.

Government estimates indicate that approximately 70 per cent of the extra $100 million the toll will generate for highway work over the next four years will come from transport related to mining and oil and gas work in the North.

Transport Minister Vince Steen said he believes companies operating mines and gas wells can write off much of the additional transport cost in their calculation of royalties owed the federal government.

The rest of the toll will be borne by consumers, who will absorb costs passed on by trucking companies and retailers.

"It's as good as we can do with the information we collect regularly," said Finance Minister Joe Handley of the estimates. "But it's an average. There is no one amount we could have that would reflect the impact on everybody."

The toll will have no impact on the annual federal grant the government receives. When resource royalties are paid to NWT governments instead of Ottawa, the highway toll will need to be rethought or scrapped, Handley said.

"This is definitely viewed as a temporary measure to help improve the infrastructure, and help us get along until we do get the resource revenues."