Jennifer Obleman
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, August 29, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - Build a road to Inuvik, blaze trails to the mines, construct a port on the Arctic Coast - but don't spend $150 million to build a bridge over the Mackenzie River.

Bernie Kapalka, owner of the Yellowknife freight hauling company Bernie's Ltd., said the $6/tonne toll is more than his business can afford. - Jennifer Obleman/NNSL photo

That's what Bernie Kapalka, owner of the Yellowknife-based freight hauling company Bernie's Ltd., had to say about the territorial government's plan to build the Deh Cho bridge by 2010.

"We don't need that bridge. We can't afford it," said Kapalka. "Our grandchildren will be paying for it for the rest of their lives."

Maintaining the ferry and the ice road provides employment in the summer and the winter, and it's better for business than the $6/tonne commercial toll the government has proposed to partially fund the project, he said.

"There's no way we can afford rates like that," he said.

"It's totally unrealistic for me. It won't put me out of business right away, but over the years, it will take its toll."

Bernie's has a staff of six that hauls 25 to 30 trips a year over the Mackenzie River, often carrying overweight loads. The toll will cost more than $300 a load, and it will also result in extra paperwork - possibly requiring extra staff, Kapalka said.

Business aside, Kapalka is also concerned about how the bridge would affect consumer prices for gas, groceries, and other essentials.

"It's not just what you pay at the bridge," he said.

Other business people, however, are in favour of moving forward with the project.

Robert Byers, now with Territorial Beverages and former store manager at the uptown Extra Foods, said the bridge will make it infinitely easier to transport supplies, resulting in huge savings for businesses forced to fly in goods during freeze up and break up.

"Anyone who thinks that a bridge is not a positive thing has lost their grip on reality," said Byers.

It's likely consumer prices will go up at the till because of the toll, but in the end, the bridge would create a more business-friendly environment, fostering competition, which would be good for both prices and wages, he added.

But Byers does agree with Kapalka on one point - the $6 commercial toll is too high. He estimated it would cost a large store like Extra Foods about $250 a truckload, which would add up to as much as $150,000 annually.

It would be much more fair if all traffic had to pay the toll, he added.

"If truck traffic is being taxed, why not passenger traffic as well? This is punitive to current and potential investors in Yellowknife and any other affected communities," he said. "All people will benefit in the long run, so all people should be responsible for the cost."

Other businesses appear to be supportive of the bridge, according to a Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce survey initiated last week. The survey asked members whether the bridge should proceed at a cost of $150 million, how a commercial toll of $6/tonne would affect their business, and whether there has been adequate public consultation. As of Monday, about 20 responses had come in. Most people felt that the project should proceed, as delaying would only increase costs, and most were willing to absorb the costs to their businesses.

"It appears that the GNWT is totally committed to proceed with the bridge and that local business supports the project," said chamber president Jim Eirikson.

"The attitude was, let's get on with it!"