Nova Star ferry funding purpose of Geoff MacLellan's upcoming Maine trip
Service that is getting $13 million this year from Nova Scotia taxpayers
Nova Scotia's transportation minister says he is travelling to Maine later this month to try to determine the status of potential financial help for the Yarmouth to Portland ferry.
Geoff MacLellan says he plans to meet with Gov. Paul LePage sometime during the week of June 22 to determine where he stands on assistance for the ferry service.
LePage promised help during last year's gubernatorial election campaign and officials in his office have said that legislation was being prepared to assist Nova Star Cruises obtain a line of credit.
But no legislation has come before the Maine state legislature, which is scheduled to wrap up its current sitting on June 17.
MacLellan says he wants to definitively find out whether the governor is a potential partner for a service that is getting $13 million this year from Nova Scotia taxpayers.
The ferry began seasonal sailings June 1, and is vowing to improve user numbers after a money-losing inaugural season that saw it get $28.5 million in subsidies from the province.