Cost of N.W.T. bridge puts other programs at risk: MLAs

Some Northwest Territories MLAs say they are worried that a major cost-overrun with the Deh Cho Bridge will mean other higher-priority projects will have to be dropped.  

The bridge's price tag has risen from roughly $165 million to $182 million, with the possibility of further increases, the government said Friday.

"We can forget about a hospital wing in the immediate future, and any other options," said Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley. "We've now heard the door slamming."

Bromley said the increased cost puts pressure on the government's ability to meet "core social needs" such as daycare, early childhood education, social services, and protecting the environment.

Some time in the next few weeks, MLAs will vote on whether to let the government borrow millions of dollars to cover the increased price tag.

"Right now we expect the $15 million is going to cover all the claims," Transportation Minister Michael McLeod said Friday.

The increase is the result of a bridge redesign, which in turn led to a one-year delay and the need to produce new quotes for the final phase of construction.

Hay River South MLA, Jane Groenewegen, suggested MLAs have a difficult decision ahead of them.  

"Some would ask why not just mothball the project and pick it up again in the future in better economic times? The problem with that idea is that apparently the pillars would need to be removed, and that would cost more than to put it there in the first place," she said.

"Terminating the lending agreement that we are backstopping would also cost about $50 million in interest and penalties."

The half-finished bridge is a joint project of the territorial government and the Deh Cho Bridge Corp., which expects to operate the bridge at Fort Providence, N.W.T.

It will cross the Mackenzie River at Fort Providence, N.W.T., and link Yellowknife and other North Slave communities to southern Canada year-round, replacing the current summer ferry service and winter ice road.