Deputy mayor raises safety concerns over Saint John Harbour Bridge

The deputy mayor of Saint John, Stephen Chase, has raised concerns over the safety of the city's Harbour Bridge, saying more repairs need to be made immediately or people who use the bridge could be in danger.

Chase made the comments during a meeting with residents living in Ward 1 Tuesday night. During the meeting, he compared the current state of the bridge to those that have recently collapsed in the United States.

The deputy mayor later backed away from those statements but said his concerns about the toll bridge's safety remain.

Chase questioned the bridge's safety despite repair work that began during the summer months and has continued this fall.

"I'm worried that a piece could fall off the bridge and that there could be a fatality," Chase told CBC News on Thursday.

The general manager of the Saint John Harbour Bridge Authority, Ken Anthony, called the deputy mayor's claim untrue and unfounded.

"Our bridge is safe. Otherwise, we wouldn't allow people to go across it," Anthony said Thursday.

Anthony said the high costs to repair the bridge — up to $35-million, in addition to the bridge authority's current debt  — will not result in cutting corners on safety.

"We've never let that impact what we need to do," Anthony said. "The repairs that are coming up in the next two years, we're going to have to borrow that money," he said.

Meanwhile, Chase said motorists should get ready to pay more to cross the bridge to help pay for the repairs.

Chase said the plan is to have the toll increase from 50 cents to 75 cents in 2011.