'Deeply annoying:' U.S. border restrictions leave Canadians, Americans frustrated and confused
The announcement Wednesday that the United States would be keeping land border crossings closed to Canadians for all non-essential travel until at least Aug. 21 has left at least one border town mayor frustrated and annoyed.
Canada announced earlier this week that starting Aug. 9, all fully vaccinated Americans would be able to cross into Canada for any reason once again, but the U.S. is not reciprocating, a move that’s left Prescott Mayor Brett Todd frustrated.
“To find out that the Americans are simply not willing to do the same is simply very frustrating and deeply annoying, quite frankly,” said Prescott, Ont. mayor Brett Todd.
The Johnstown bridge is minutes from Prescott and connects with Ogdensburg, N.Y.
“We know there’s a lot of travel into the U.S. Some of it is to visit family and friends, a lot of it’s for shopping, a lot of it is for vacation purposes and so on,” Todd says, adding there are a lot of pent up Canadians wanting to make the trip Stateside.
“I do think that they’re actually selling themselves short on this as well. They’re impacting their own border communities.”
Jonathan Nause is one of those Canadians itching to travel again. The Ottawa resident recently returned via airplane from a NASCAR trip. He had plans to go to another race in early August in New York State, but has now it the brakes on that trip.
“Coming up on this one now, this next trip it’s going to have to be flying and renting a car again, I just don’t think that we’re going to be able to do it financially.”
Nause adds that in his experience, life has largely returned to normal in the States, and he even faced one of his fears to have that feeling again.
“I hate flying, terrified of heights, don’t like the concept of flying but I just did it. I had to go. I had to get back living life.”
The decision to restrict Canadians from crossing the border is one that is confusing to many. Canada has recently surpassed America in terms of vaccination rate; as of Wednesday morning 51.5% of Canadians were fully vaccinated compared to 48.3% of Americans.
“It’s definitely a little frustrating seeing that, because I think the Syracuse Mets had around 10,000 people in their stadium here recently,” says Jessie Hooper, the events manager at Thousand Islands Winery located in New York State, referencing a baseball game played on July 4.
Hooper says this would usually be the winery’s busiest time of year with lots of tours, tastings, and rentals, but they are missing a big chunk of their business due to the lack of Canadian tourists.
“We’re definitely missing some of those groups,” Hooper tells CTV News. “On the State side, we’re slowly seeing more and more of them.”
“It’s a one-way street right now and I would say I think the one way-street is still under construction,” says Todd of the border situation.
“I’m not sure how much travelling is actually going to be happening.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Demonstrators kicked out of Ontario legislature for disruption after failed keffiyeh vote
A group of demonstrators were kicked out of the legislature after a second NDP motion calling for unanimous consent to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh failed to pass.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Thieves use stolen forklift to rip cash machine out of U.K. bank
Police in the U.K. are searching for a group of suspects seen on video using a forklift to steal a cash machine from a bank.
'There was a lot of black smoke': Crane operator sounds alarm while trapped during highrise fire in Halifax
A tower crane operator alerted emergency crews after noticing a fire on a construction site in Halifax Tuesday morning.