Jim Quinn, the CEO of Port Saint John. (Photo: Stephanie Sirois)
Canada’s transport minister announced major changes to the cruise ship season Friday in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Marc Garneau said larger cruise ships will not be allowed to dock at Canadian ports from April 2 to July 1.
Garneau says the new restriction applies to any ship carrying more than 500 passengers and crew
In Saint John, a total of 22 cruise ships were scheduled to make ports of call between the affected dates.
Jim Quinn, CEO of Port Saint John, said 18 cruise ships carrying more than 41,000 passengers will be impacted.
“That’s roughly an 18 per cent impact [on the season], which would translate into roughly $18 million of economic impact for the direct and indirect benefits,” said Quinn during a news conference Friday.
The start of the cruise ship season in Canada will be deferred from April 2 to July 1st. This will apply to cruise ships carrying 500+ passengers & crew. The cruise ship season for vessels of all sizes with Canadian Arctic stops will be deferred for the entire season this year. https://t.co/sjThqvckN3
— Marc Garneau (@MarcGarneau) March 13, 2020
Saint John was preparing for a record-breaking cruise season in 2020, with over 90 vessel calls and more than 200,000 passengers expected.
“The banner year that we were anticipating, if things remain static, won’t be the banner year we were hoping for,” said Quinn, “but I do want to underscore that it still means that we’ll have a season in excess of 180,000 passengers. Not that far ago, we’d say that was an exceptionally good year.”
Most of the city’s cruise business — about two-thirds of it — does not arrive until September or October, he noted.
Quinn said he is pleased the federal government is taking somewhat of a staged approach with the restrictions.
“We need to make decisions based on information available and do it in a staged, informed manner, and I think that’s exactly what they’ve done,” he said.
Quinn said the port will continue to work with and follow the directions of government officials and public health agencies.
With files from Stephanie Sirois and Brad Perry.
