KINGSTON, ON, May 9, 2024
/CNW/ - A Kingston cruise boat
operator has written to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to
personally intervene in a botched bridge repair job that has
paralyzed commercial marine traffic in the eastern Ontario city's harbour.
"I ask you to take immediate action to ensure government is part
of the solution instead of the problem," St. Lawrence Cruise Lines
President Jason Clark wrote in the
letter sent to Trudeau's office Wednesday afternoon.
At issue is the Lasalle causeway, which divides
Kingston's inner and outer
harbors. An accident during repairs to the span has blocked
the inner harbour, trapping a number of commercial vessels and
cutting off access to eastern Ontario's only drydock.
The federal government had originally promised that the causeway
would reopen by May 1st,
but instead has only given a vague timeline of 8 to 10 weeks for
when the bridge will navigable channel will be reopened.
"We have sailed into a perfect storm of bureaucratic bungling
and ministerial apathy." said Clark.
Local marine stakeholders have presented a solution to federal
officials at a reasonable cost that would open a navigation channel
from Kingston's inner to outer
harbour, and a local construction company has provided a written
quote that they could perform the work within three weeks. However,
nearly three weeks later no progress has been made to reopen a
channel to marine traffic, something the federal government is
required by law to ensure.
"I have met with numerous federal officials and have been given
the runaround," said Clark. "I have written to the
appropriate cabinet ministers who don't seem to be paying
attention. Apparently, none of these people understand what it is
like to have to meet a payroll today."
St. Lawrence Cruise Lines can
take the federal government to court to force them to meet their
obligations under federal law and that option remains on the table,
said Clark.
St. Lawrence Cruise Lines
operates the Canadian Empress, which provides tours to Montreal, Quebec
City, and the National Capital Region. Clark has
already had to cancel upcoming cruises and he warned that he and
other commercial operators face laying off staff if the inaction
continues.
"This is not some local problem that a bunch of bureaucrats
sitting in cubicles in Ottawa can
shrug their shoulders over," said Clark. "The companies
affected pump tens of millions of dollars into economies of eastern
Ontario and Quebec, even some businesses in the Prime
Minister's own riding may be affected. It's time for
action."
St. Lawrence Cruise Lines is a
Kingston-owned business operating
on the St. Lawrence River since 1981.
SOURCE St. Lawrence Cruise Lines