Drummondville losing customs office

February 28, 2011

Three others will have shorter hours

The following is from the 25 February 2011 edition of "montrealgazette.com".

Despite lobbying from municipal officials, the Canadian Border Services Agency says it still plans to go ahead with the closing of its inland customs office in the city of Drummondville, as part of its restructuring in Quebec.

The restructuring is related to budget cuts that are part of a national spending review by the CBSA.

That review is part of a much broader review of all government spending that the Conservative Party promised to carry out as part of its policy platform in the 2008 election campaign.

The paperwork and electronic-record keeping now being done in Drummondville will be transferred to the Stanhope border station, situated east of the Quebec town of Stanstead, on the Quebec-Vermont border.

The transfer will take place April 1.

The transfer won't affect ordinary travellers since the office had only been dealing with the transport of commercial goods.

The Stanhope border crossing is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Last fall, the CBSA announced plans to close down two border stations in Quebec and cut back on the operating hours of another three, as part of its spending review. The closings and reduced hours will take place on April 1, as well.

The two stations to be closed are both south of Montreal - Jaimeson's Line, near Huntingdon, and Franklyn Centre, near Franklin. The three stations to see their operating hours scaled back are in the Eastern Townships.

They are Glen Sutton, East Pinnacle and Morses Line.

The CBSA said the stations to be closed or cut back do not have a lot of traffic.

Jamieson's Line handles an average of 12 vehicles a day, it says, while Glen Sutton handles only 37 vehicles a day. CBSA currently operates 26 border crossings in the Montérégie and Eastern Townships regions.


Topic(s): 
Canadian Economy & Politics
Information Source: 
Canadian News Channel
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