According to a CTV News report, a coalition of Chambers of Commerce representing border communities is calling on the federal government to scrap the ArriveCan app requirements for travelers crossing the border.
A Statistics Canada report shows U.S. visits through land ports are still down significantly across the country. The border-city mayors are therefore also asking the government to lift the remaining COVID-related border restrictions.
Wait times at land border crossings have lengthened by up to two hours since 2019 despite traffic being cut in half, and bridge authorities attribute this entirely to restrictions and the ArriveCAN app.
“The border measures are not only slowing down border crossings, but they’re also having a deterrent effect on visitors from the USA,” said Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce CEO Rakesh Naidu.
“The ArriveCAN app is hurting both our tourism industry and our economy in general,” added Naidu.
“It isn’t only affecting the tourism industry. More than half of the total trade Canada conducts with the United States is by truck. The additional time and resources spent on border measures and the ArriveCAN app slows the crossing for all and puts additional strain on already stretched supply chains.”
The group of chambers representing border communities includes the following:
Want to see more of our stories on Google?
P.S. Want to keep this site truly independent? Support us by buying us a beer, treating us to a coffee, or shopping through Amazon here. Links in this post are affiliate links, so we earn a tiny commission at no charge to you. Thanks for supporting independent Canadian media!
While the push to scrap the program is completely valid, I don’t think it’s removal will bring material change to the bottom lines of businesses at the border. Shoppers still need to deal with inflation, higher gas prices & much smaller consumer spending power due to job losses hitting multiple sectors. There’s also a labor shortage at border checkpoints on both sides. Simply opening the floodgates isn’t the only fix that’ll alleviate the pinch these towns are in. We’re still years away from these towns feeling material recovery from just that first lockdown.
I agree with what you are saying, but scrapping the app is a step in the right direction.
All valid points. However, air travel is back up much closer to 2019 than land border crossing seems to be. An additional 2 hour time to cross the border (with traffic still down by 1/2) is going to be off putting for anyone in the US thinking of crossing and for Canadians thinking of going for a day trip.
I expect a lot of people just don’t want to bother with the hassle of one more thing, especially for what used to be a quick hop across the border. If the US decided they needed to collect your personal info every time you drove over, you might be willing to or you might just find something else to do for the day.