Toll Free BC, catchy but reckless

Premier John Horgan fulfilled a campaign promise by announcing an end to tolls on the Port Mann and Golden Ears bridges on Friday.

But he also raised some big questions as he stood behind a podium with the catchy phrase “Toll-Free B.C.”

Start with the most obvious. If it was “unfair” that some Lower Mainland drivers had to pay tolls on the bridges, as Horgan maintains, what about islanders faced to pay tolls for their basic transportation — the ferries?

Lower Mainland drivers at least have alternative routes. But islanders have no choice except to pay BC Ferries fares that have risen far faster than incomes.

“Unlike the previous government, we’re not going to pit one region of the province against the other,” said Transportation Minister Clare Trevena at the toll announcement.

Which will come as a shock to her North Island constituents who pay $6.10 to take the ferry from Quadra Island to Campbell River, while Interior residents ride for free on the government’s Kootenay Lake ferry — which travels almost three times as far.

The tolling decision — while politically popular — also raises serious policy questions.

Tolls ensured that project costs were covered by the people who benefited from them.

They also created an incentive for travellers to consider car pooling or transit, which led to reduced congestion and greenhouse gas emissions.

And by taking aim at tolls, the government has made it harder to consider road user fees that could reduce congestion and increase fairness.

BC Green Leader Andrew Weaver cited those reasons in criticizing the announcement.

“Eliminating tolls will increase congestion in Metro Vancouver as more people turn to their cars,” he said.

“It sends precisely the wrong message to commuters who may now opt out of public transit.”

And Weaver also raised the important issue of fiscal responsibility.

Yes, the NDP had promised the ban and voters gave them a mandate to go ahead with that commitment.

But the fact remains the government has made a decision that will reduce revenue by some $250 million a year — money that could have funded programs or been used to reduce taxes.

The decision also means Port Mann’s $3.6-billion debt will no longer be considered self-supporting, and will appear on the province’s books. The auditor general had been urging the change for several years.

The BC Liberals’ response to the toll announcement highlighted the error they made in copying much of the Green-NDP platforms in their desperate pre-defeat throne speech.

Liberal MLAs criticizing the toll decision were quickly reminded that they supported the same policy just three months ago.

Yes, the end to tolls was a campaign commitment. And yes, the new government might well be able to manage the cost of this single policy choice.

But it made many other costly promises, and supporters are pushing for quick action.

If the NDP government hopes to last, it needs to show a willingness to say no and stress fiscal prudence over political opportunism.

The Sept. 11 budget update will be the first test for Horgan and Finance Minister Carole James.

British Columbians should be watching closely.