Saturday, October 24, 1992 & VA rd 23 dl ey ID Gasoline taxes should go towards road repairs B.C. motorists pay millions of dollars in gasoline taxes which should be used to finance road construction and mainte- nance. They should not be subject to ad- ditional taxes simply because the money currently collected goes into “general rev- enue”, says the B.C. Automobile Associa- tion. Responding to a suggestion by the B.C. Road Builders and Heavy Construc- tion Association that the government consider a temporary surtax on gasoline sold on Vancouver Island to revive con- struction of the Island Highway, BCAA notes that some $320 million dollars in gas taxes are already collected annually by the province. “It’s estimated that approximately $600 million is needed to finish the Is- land Highway construction. If the money Victoria currently collected on each litre of gasoline was put towards road con- struction and maintenance, instead if be- ing dropped into the non-specific ‘gener- al revenue’ area, it would go a long way to having improved roadways and a true user-pay system,” says John Ratel, BCAA’s Director of Government Affairs. “And if all levels of taxation on gasoline were applied back to transportation, we’d see that tome $750 million per year is generated by the B.C. motorist.” As well, although the Road Builders Association suggests a “temporary” gaso- line surtax, BCAA believes that it would become such a lucrative source of rev- enue that a government would be reluc- tant to remove it, even once construction was finished and paid for. “We all remember that the tolls on the Coquihalla Highway were to be a temporary measure,” said Ratel. “Well it’s six years later and the government shows no signs of removing the toll. It’s time governments stopped seeing mo- torists as a never-ending source of rev- enue, and started examining ways to uti- lize the money collected through tolls, transit levies and taxes on gasoline more effectively and for the purposes for which they were intended.” DOWNTOWN SHELL AIR & SERVICE BCAA APPROVED 365-6133 975 Columbia Ave. Castlegar, B.C. 7 TILDEN ¢ Rental Car Sales * Lease to Own ¢ Short Term Leasing * Daily Rentals ¢ Financing OAC 1761 COLUMBIA AVE 365-7555 Noy yoter) > Members, Support Your Association 596 Baker St., Nelson * 352-3535 BIG TIRE WINTER WHEELS MP V's, Mazda 626, 929, Ford Probe, Honda Prelude LIMITED QUANTITIES Take Off or New 1507 Columbia Ave. Castlegar - 365-2955 Plan your Autoplan with BCAA! jj NOW STRIPPING 1986 GMC 4x4 1/2 ton 1980 CHEV 4x4 1/2 ton 1979 CHEV 2x4 1/2 ton 1978 CHEV 2x4 1/2 ton Western Auto Wreckers Granite Road, Nelson Ph. 354-4802 STAY TUNED WITH MAZDA Need a car? Need a tune-up? Need a set of tires? 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PROPANE SERVICE CENTER GOVERNMENT INSPECTION FACILITY Wednesday October 28, 1992 NewsFLASH dq: - ~ yyy Increasing cloud tomorrow through Saturday with a possi- bility of precipitation. @ OUR PEOPLE Kinnaird Elementary School is more than its name implies. The school is in fact made up of three elementaries that serve 360 children from south Castie- gar to Blueberry with a pro- gressive and exciting curricu- lum. page 9 @ LOCAL SPORTS The Castlegar Rebels went Hollywood over the weekend. . They were good against Grand Forks, bad against Rossland and ugly against Spokane. page 13 @ ARTS & LEISURE Members of the Union of Spiritual Communities of Christ have a new path to follow. After five weeks of digging, cutting and building, a five-person crew has linked Verigin’s Tomb to another historic site. preview 3 Local Sports Action Ads Calendar Arts & Leisure Homes 2 6 7 Our People 9 13 16 preview 2 preview 3 preview 4 News photo by Corinne Jackson Castlegar residents lined up at the Legion to cast their ballots in the Charlottetown Agreement Monday, and after the votes had been tallied, the deal had been overwhelmingly rejected both locally and nationally. Canada rejects agreement : Agreement. Scott David Harrison —— a EDITOR . Canadians have spoken. Voters from coast-to-coast turned out in record numbers Monday, closing the casket on Canada’s latest constitutional package. 145.5% In addition to British Co- lumbia, Quebec (55.4), Nova Scotia (51.1), Manitoba (61.7), Saskatchewan (55.2), Alberta (60.1) and the Yukon (56.1) rejected the constitu- tional package. No 54.0% The Charlottetown Agree- Complete West Kootenay cover. “Tm glad to see it being page 5 defeated by a significant ment was rejected in six of 10 provinces, with British Columbia leading the way. British Columbians defeated the accord in each of its 32 federal rid- ings by a huge margin — 68 per cent versus 31.7. The no vote was slightly higher in Kootenay West-Revel- stoke where 77.5 per cent of 47,211 eligible voters turned out to cast their ballots against the Charlottetown Agreement. Of the 36,600 ballots collected in Kootenay West-Revelstoke, 25,795 voters — or 71 per cent — rejected the accord. There were 213 spoiled ballots. : “I think it’s a very, very sad day for Canada,” MP Lyle Kris- tiansen said, watching the polls roll in. “And it’s a sad day not because we lacked to see the agreement as the consensus it was, but because we missed an opportunity to unite this coun- Only Newfoundland (62.9 per cent), New Brunswick (61.3), Prince Edward Island (73.6), the Northwest Territories (60.6) and Ontario (49.8 versus 49.6) endorsed the Charlottetown margin,” Reform Party can- didate and no campaigner Jim Gouk said Monday evening. “The accord itself was terrible and they people of Canada are saying that with every poll. “It was a bad deal to begin with,” Gouk continued, “The yes side tried to argue it on an emotional level. From the very be- ginning we said read the accord, see what it says for yourself. People seem to have done that and whether they agree with the Reform Party or not, they have come down on our side with this referendum.” The turnout for Canada’s first national referendum in over 50 years makes the no vote all that more impressive. Exchad- ing Quebec, 72.1 per cent of 13,645,051 eligible voters cast balk” lots in the referendum with 5,318,446 against and 4,475,785 in favor of the Charlottetown Agreement. ; Turnout in Quebec, which conducted its own referendum, was the highest in Canada at 83 per cent. NEW DEMOCRATS INTRODUCE NEW LABOR LEGISLATION, PAGE 3