Driving to Alaska, which I want to do after the pandemic is over, is now a lot more specific. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announcing new credentials as of July 31 at 12:01 am PDT. You must enter at a crossing from a list of 5 crossings: Abbotsford-Huntingdon (BC); Coutts (AB); Kingsgate (BC); North Portal (SK); and Osoyoos (BC).
Travellers will get a “hang tag” attached to their rear view mirror. This will help reduce Canadians' concern over U.S. licence plates in Canada. Drivers must check in once again with the CBSA before exiting Canada for Alaska.
They will be limited to travel within Canada using the most direct route from the point of entry while avoiding all national parks, leisure sites, and tourism activities. For what it's worth, Alberta RCMP said no fines were issued to wayward U.S. drivers in July.
Curious what the direct route would be crossing at Coutts. That could put you in Calgary and on the way to the Icefield Parkway. The drawback is the route would put you in Banff National Park, a violation of the terms. Just thinking about a post-pandemic trip.
You can go through the specifics if you are planning a trip. Quite surprised this wasn't on the docket before now. The trust the countries share should be encouraged but clearly some travellers were violating the letter and spirit of that trust.
CanadianCrossing.com border crossings coverage
CanadianCrossing.com travel coverage
Canadians do a lot more shopping in the United States than the other way around. Yet the numbers are now in the opposite direction. U.S. Customs and Border Protection says more than 2,100 people were turned away attempting to enter America at a land border between March and June.
The Canada Border Services Agency said more than 6,000 travellers were stopped from coming into Canada at land, rail, and marine ports between March 22 and July 22.
Those numbers are apples and oranges. The Canadian numbers include more ways to get in and are for a month longer than the U.S. numbers.
Canadians might be smarter in not trying to cross the border at this time. Americans may be clueless or they just don't care.
"When I called the U.S. the biggest petri dish in the world, that was not just off the cuff," George Creek, president of BC Marine Parks Forever, told NPR.
There are stories about accidentally crossing the border. The way some Americans are traveling shows they know the border is closed. Potential penalties include being banned from entering Canada for a period of time.
The 21st day in the month is now a trigger in whether the border closing will be renewed. There is no political capital on the Canadian side to open. Even if the worst of COVID-19 is in states nowhere near the border, Canadians for the most part have said no to the United States.
The American political landscape has a lot of issues; somehow the Canadian border isn't one of those issues lately.
Assuming the NFL starts anywhere the regular scheduled dates, the Buffalo Bills have informed Canadian season ticket holders that if the border remains closed, money will be refunded accordingly. No major sports league in North America has allowed fans; the NFL seems to think the league will allow limited numbers of fans. The Buffalo Bills have a significant Canadian clientele.
The Canadian government protection for those unemployed and underemployed isn't perfect but is light years away from the United States. The loss of the $600 unemployment supplement, for political purposes only, will do significant damage to the U.S. economy, which is saying something.
photo credit: Government of Canada
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