Mayors of 15 communities, including Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake, asking federal government to drop all testing requirements for fully vaccinated travelers at Canada-U.S. land border.
Elected officials from Canadian communities bordering the United States are urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to drop COVID-19 testing requirements for fully vaccinated travelers at the Canada-U.S. land border.
Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, and Niagara-on-the-Lake Lord Mayor Betty Disero are two of the mayors from 15 communities to sign a letter sent to the Prime Minister.
"As you know, border communities have been at the forefront of the federal strategy and have paid a heavy price with the border being closed to all but essential travel for 20 months," the letter reads. "Even now, the border remains under very strict testing guidelines that are not justified by current science and are out of line with public health officers’ mandates."
The mayors say the federal government needs to review border measures at a quicker pace, noting the current guidance will not be reviewed again until the end of this month.
"The time to end testing at the land border is now. In March, Canadians will soon witness full capacity in NHL games with 20,000 fans with no testing requirement, but fully vaccinated American tourists will not be able to cross over the border in their own family car without an unnecessary, expensive test administered by a health professional," reads the letter. "This absurdity will undermine Canadians’ confidence in all levels of government."
Currently, fully vaccinated travelers can show proof of a laboratory-issued antigen test taken one day before a scheduled flight or arrival at a land border crossing.
Travelers are also required to use the ArriveCAN app before entering Canada to upload their proof of vaccination and COVID-19 test result.
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