The B.C. government will contribute $15-million for a rail project that will help deliver goods to emerging markets in Asia, Premier Christy Clark announced Monday morning as part of the inaugural phase of her ambitious three-part jobs plan.
Clark spoke in the coastal northern port city of Prince Rupert, the city she says will act as a gateway for shipping goods to the burgeoning Asia Pacific markets.
"We are two or three days closer to Asia than any other ports on the West Coast. This is where our future begins," she said.
CN Rail and the Port of Prince Rupert will each contribute $30-million to the $90-million road-rail project, which starts on Ridley Island.
The project will involve the construction of new outbound and inbound rail lines as well as the expansion of existing on-site rail utilities. Clark says it will create 570 construction jobs over the life of the project and create up to 4,000 jobs once completed.
Clark says the federal government "continues to work through its process" to determine how much it will contribute to the remaining $15-million.
The announcement comes as the premier tours the province all this week before unveiling her entire agenda on Thursday at a Board of Trade luncheon.
Clark will appear in Kitimaat Village Monday afternoon before heading to Kamloops on Tuesday. She will appear in Surrey and Vancouver later in the week.
