No toll increase for seaway in 2012

The St Lawrence Seaway will see no toll increase in 2012, according to the St Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC). The corporation said it made the decision to extend the toll freeze in order to maintain the momentum underlying the Seaway’s market development initiatives.

“Given the economic situation, an extra year with no toll increase will assist our stakeholders in their efforts to develop new business and will serve to reinforce the Great Lake-St Lawrence Seaway system’s position as the gateway to North America’s heartland,” said Bruce Hodgson, the SLSMC’s director of market development.

SLSMC president and CEO Terence Bowles also voiced support for the move: “We are striving to reduce system costs and bring more cargo into the system,” he said. “The extension of the toll freeze and of the various incentive programs represents tangible steps toward meeting these objectives”.