The Department of Transportation and Public Works today signed a multi-year funding agreement with the PEI Snowmobile Association that will further strengthen efforts to develop the Confederation Trail as a safe winter tourism asset.
Since the early 1990's, the PEI Snowmobile Association has leased the Confederation Trail from the province each winter for the use of its membership. In that time, the PEI Snowmobile Association has partnered with the province to develop and administer safety programs, grooming services and monitoring on the Trail. The PEI Snowmobile Association has also been a strong advocate for using the Trail as a safe winter tourism asset. Working together, the province last year passed amendments to the Off-Highway Traffic Act which strengthen enforcement.
"The Confederation Trail is very important to the economic and community development of rural Prince Edward Island. By having this agreement with the PEI Snowmobile Association in place, we are recognizing that importance and building a strong foundation for the future growth of safe, trail-based, winter tourism activity," said Transportation and Public Works Minister Don MacKinnon.
Under the terms of the agreement, the Department of Transportation and Public Works will contribute $10,000 annually towards the activities of the PEI Snowmobile Association over a five-year period provided the number of registered snowmobiles exceeds 1500 in each of those years. The department will also provide a further $10 per registered snowmobile to the PEI Snowmobile Association for every snowmobile registered over 2000 in any year of the agreement. In exchange, the PEI Snowmobile Association will provide trained wardens to conduct regular trail monitoring to enhance safety and assist in the enforcement of vehicle registration requirements.
"Stable core funding is something that our Association has been looking for from government for many years. I'm very pleased that the provincial government has responded to community needs by developing this agreement which will help us make the Confederation Trail safer for everyone to enjoy," said Gerry Martin, President of the PEI Snowmobile Association.
Official statistics from the department's Driver Vehicle Registration System will be used to measure the number of registrations. The agreement will cover this current season and run through until 2006. The cost of the agreement has been built into the department's existing financial framework.