Honourable senators, I would like to share with you the most wonderful news. The $50 toll to cross the Confederation Bridge connecting Prince Edward Island to New Brunswick will be reduced to $20.

Both Prime Minister Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre promised in their election platforms that they would address the regional unfairness of high tolls in Atlantic Canada. In addition, Prime Minister Carney promised that he would reduce by at least half the $91 cost for the seasonal Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island, to Caribou, Nova Scotia, ferry as well as the ferry service connecting Souris, Prince Edward Island, to Quebec’s Magdalen Islands, which can cost as much as $220 for a round trip.

In additional good news, the Liberal Party platform contained the same promise regarding the Marine Atlantic service connecting Nova Scotia to Newfoundland and Labrador, which can cost almost $500.

Ten years after Justin Trudeau announced that he would remove the tolls on the Champlain Bridge in Montreal, completely reversing the national user-pay policy for federally owned transportation infrastructure, Prince Edward Islanders and Atlantic Canadians are catching a financial break. Prime Minister Carney is taking action.

Given that both the Champlain Bridge, which cost over $4 billion to build, and the Confederation Bridge, which cost over $1 billion, are owned by the Government of Canada, Prince Edward Islanders have long wondered why this double standard — where some Canadians benefited from a toll-free bridge while others were stuck paying over $50 — was not being corrected and why Prince Edward Islanders were being treated like second-class Canadians. The long-overdue announcement on the reduction of tolls will provide financial relief for Prince Edward Islanders and help reduce trade barriers in Atlantic Canada.

Prince Edward Islanders are not receiving special treatment, only long-overdue results. The reduction in tolls for the year-round Confederation Bridge and the seasonal Wood Islands ferry in eastern Prince Edward Island still means that the annual federal subsidy to support these vital infrastructures will remain less than the federal government support for the Champlain Bridge in Montreal.

Colleagues, I wish to thank my fellow Island senators — Senator Francis, Senator MacAdam and Senator Robinson — for their support, as well as all Prince Edward Islanders who added their voices for Prince Edward Island during this decade-long campaign.

And most of all, I want to thank Prime Minister Carney who decided that he was going to treat all Canadians equally regardless of where they live in Canada.