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"Too often, those of us living in the South of our countries have treated the North merely as a source of wealth from natural resources" Extract from a speech on September 30, 2003 at St. Petersburg, Russia by Mrs. Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada. |
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The vast Canadian Northeast was developed by courageous explorers who didn't spare any effort in often difficult conditions to develop communities which to this day, follow the ideals of their ancestors. Everywhere today on the North Shore and in Labrador, we share with the aboriginal communities, the desire to live here and see our children grow up in beautiful open spaces. The huge resources of the region puts the North Shore at the head of the list of regions resources in regards to available revenue per person and at the top of the list of Quebec regions for public and private investments per person. As well, in 2002 for example, these investments were 16 000 $ per inhabitant1, almost three times more than the average for the regions of Quebec. Within the framework of the globalization of markets, the increased economic growth that we are experiencing has combined paradoxically with an exodus of our population, a worldly phenomenon. Factors which have contribute to this exodus are the new extraction techniques of our industries which allow production with fewer employees and the especially high concentration of decision-making centres outside the region and thus strategic jobs linked to these businesses. |
 Click on the map to visualize a large size. Other photos are available in our gallery at section: The served area |
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However, despite the loss of numerous jobs dependant on regional resources, the economy of the North Shore continues to grow. This growth generates an increase in the number of vehicles, particularly truck-trailers, to the bottle-neck point which is what the ferry boat service on the Saguenay River has become. The opportunity study by the consortium Naturam-Genivar in 1999 predicted that from 2017, the ferry service would no longer be able to meet the demand all year long. A recent update of these predictions done from data of the Société des Traversiers du Québec (Quebec Ferry Society) of the real amount of traffic in the five years following the study shows the predictions for the increase in traffic were underestimated in this study and that in fact, the year of saturation would be 2011. Knowing that a delay of ten years is possible before the completion of the bridge (in 2013), we can see the necessity to act quickly. Without a rail link to the continent, with the exception of the ferry lane in Baie-Comeau, we can understand the strategic importance taken on by the smoothness of the traffic flow and safety on the only road linking the region to the central cities of the country. Our main road artery, the only one, becomes choked at the crossing of the Saguenay River and already does not allow the 100 000 people of the North Shore and the 28 000 people of Labrador, spread out over an area larger than France, to obtain the oxygen necessary for their social and economic construction. |
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© Copyright 2003 - The Society for a Bridge over the Saguenay |
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The served area: North east Canada