MONTREAL — There’s a new factor in the Champlain bridge toll debate.
Radio-Canada got its hands on a study that suggests that a toll on the Champlain Bridge would force major traffic onto other bridges.
The study was commissioned by the Federal government and conducted by British firm Steer Davies Gleave.
It showed that a rush hour toll of $2.50 on the new Champlain Bridge would divert $30,000 cars a day to other bridges like the Jacques Cartier and the Victoria Bridges.
READ MORE: Tolls divert drivers away from new Champlain Bridge: PBO report
Those extra vehicles would mean that traffic capacity would exceed the maximum on those spans.
Both the provincial and municipal governments have said they are opposed to tolls on the new Champlain Bridge.
Quebec Transport Minister Robert Poeti told reporters Tuesday that he doesn’t need to see the report to know that tolls on the Champlain would be a bad idea.
“We don’t want a toll. For me it was always clear. We don’t need a report to understand that it will have a major impact on other bridges.”
Transport Canada hasn’t officially released the study.
The new Champlain Bridge is expected to be completed by 2018.
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