FORT FRANCES – It has been nearly a month since the Aazhogan LP, a partnership of Rainy River First Nations and the BMI Group and owners of the International Bridge, announced a simpler toll structure for those crossing to and from the United States.
The new structure would colipase three categories into four and raise the price of each toll by a minimal amount depending on the vehicle a commuter drives – all except for one category. The price hike for a 12-crossing Commuter Card for two-axle vehicles went up from $30 to $90.
The rise in prices has now left some residents' pockets completely drained.
Fort Frances Lakers Pierce Gouin and Matt Wherley are youths living in International Falls, Minnesota, but two times a week they commute to Canada to join their teammates for practice and games.
In an interview with Gouin and Wherley, they mentioned that for nine months, the tolls will cost their parents over $3,000.
“My parents are helping us out with that. It’s expensive. They wish they didn’t have to do that. But there is no way around it, so we have to kind of buy them,” said Wherley.
“It kind of sucks because we could be using that money towards hockey equipment and sticks, so we wish we had that extra cash,” added Gouin.
Jasmine Bruyere is a single mother who crosses the bridge every day to see family to ensure her children have access to affordable educational and physical activities. She said that on top of her daily activities, crossing the border allows her access to the food bank on occasion, as well as cheaper groceries.
“There is something we can’t get on our side, so it’s better for us to go get them over there,” said Bruyere.
Bruyere explains that the increase in tolls has cut into her grocery budget significantly.
“If I have to pay $90 once a week, we won’t be able to do that. It’s already to the point where I can’t even put them into their sports because I couldn’t afford to go over there. It’s already causing a negative effect for us,” acknowledged Bruyere.
“I can’t afford to spit out $360 a month, if not more sometimes. That’s definitely going to hit my pocket pretty hard,” Bruyere reflected.
As a single mother, the impact is not only monetary but the price hike has a toll on her support system. Bruyere mother is a dual citizen but lives in International Falls where she was raised. Helping her mother, whom Bruyere admits is partially blind, with her day-to-day is essential for her mother’s well-being.
“For my mom, it was a very hard impact for her, because I am not able to say let's go visit your sisters or let's go visit your supports. My mom and her sister are pretty close. And, now it’s to the point where we have to beg, steal, and borrow a car to get across. It’s too much for us,” explained Bruyere.
Bruyere has not been able to afford to buy a commuter card since the Aazhogan LP raised the fees.
Travis Glowasky, Owner of Studio Gibbous, feels the rising tolls will hurt his marketing business. Studio Gibbous is a web design & marketing agency which services both sides of the border.
“It’s going to hinder how many times we can cross within the week,” said Glowasky.
He explained that he is going to have to be a little more strategic when setting up meetings with his current and potential clients.
Glowasky provides his clients with a hands-on marketing experience where Studio Gibbous goes so far as ensuring that his client business websites are equipped with visual representation that is done in-house.
“I cross at least twice a week. Whether it’s going to Menards to something or if I am doing a photography product. One of my clients is called Seven Peak Candles and they are based out of Oregon. They’ll ship me a set of candles and I’ll set up scenes for those candles. So I am having to run across the river to either Menards or some of the craft stores over there because we don’t have those services on this side.
The backlash to the price hike is felt by many businesses around the Rainy River District as business owners on both sides of the border are worried that their economies will take more of a nose dive in this uncertain time post-pandemic.
“Our clients are freaking out. We deal not only with business in town but across the entire Rainy River District. A lot of them are resorts and lodges for hunting and fishing. Right now, they are trying to figure out how are they going to be able to sell that the bridge is going up 3x (dollars) to those coming from Iowa or Ohio for this vacation where they are now going to spend almost $300 roughly to cross the border,” Glowasky stated.
Although Aazhogan LP claims the price hike on tolls will cover ongoing bridge maintenance and recoup the loss of revenue during the COVID pandemic, the general feeling among the business community is that daily business will come to an eventual traffic jam and ultimately turn communicators away.
To combat these effects, Studio Gibbous will need to work harder in selling America’s added expense to Canadians is worth the bang for its buck.
“We’re still trying to figure that out at the moment for the resorts. We are trying to figure out if there might be packages, some way we can figure out a reimbursement or advise that there is going to be an extra fee because some of them may have other insinuating circumstances where they will have to spend more time at Canadian customs crossing, so that can be a bit of a deterrent for them,” said Glowasky.
