New Brunswick — Premier Brian Gallant says that New Brunswickers have had a chance to give their””two cents” worth in regards to the province’s fiscal woes, and now is the time to give them back their change.
Last week, Gallant and his cabinet negotiated a deal with Tim Hortons. As of April 1, all Tims locations in New Brunswick will have a toll booth added to their drive-thru locations. A separate window will be added to each store for collection of the $0.25 toll. The tolls can be paid in cash, debit or credit.
Customers will place their order at the drive-thru window, pull up to the toll window, pay the toll, then proceed to the next window to pay for their order and pick it up. Wait times at the drive-thru should not be affected too severely.
The agreement with Tim Hortons will remain in place for 20 years, and 15 percent of the total collected will remain with each location. All other associated costs will be covered by Tim Hortons.
Gallant says he loves the yearly “Roll Up the Rim to Win” contest, and that beginning in April, one of the prizes will be “win toll” with the odds of winning estimated at 1:99.
“The Liberals have listened to New Brunswickers about not adding tolls to our highways. We know that adding tolls to a few highway locations would negatively affect only those who live near those areas,” explained Gallant. “We have to be creative in solving our debt problems. It needs to be fair to all New Brunswickers — choosing Tim Hortons is the single best way to ensure each and every New Brunswicker shoulders a little of the burden.”
This initiative is expected to create more than 5,000 jobs, and the province’s debt will be fully repaid over the duration of its agreement with Tims.
A “Toll Buster” group has already gained a presence on Facebook with suggestions on how to avoid paying the toll. Only 3 comments have been posted to the group so far: “Why don’t you just get out of your car and order inside?”; “Go to a different coffee shop!”; and “No real choice, I guess we’ll just have to pay the toll.”