ArriveCan removal prompts relief, indifference on N.B. and Maine border

Saturday’s removal of the ArriveCan mandate is prompting a range of reactions, from relief to indifference, at one of New Brunswick and Maine’s busiest border crossings.

People arriving at the Canadian border are no longer required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccinations, via the ArriveCan app, or be subject to random mandatory COVID-19 tests.

As well, unvaccinated travellers will no longer be required to isolate once entering Canada.

“I’m so happy,” says Wayne Ganong. “I’m on cloud nine because I don’t have any more obstacles to get over, or hurdles.”

Ganong says he only made one trip from St. Stephen, N.B. to Calais, Maine with the ArriveCan requirement in effect. He says he never made another attempt because of trouble returning to Canada.

“I have a flip phone which is ancient and I couldn't answer all the questions and so forth,” says Ganong. “I had a bad experience, and so did 14 other seniors who came in the same day I did. Because what they were told, and what they had to have, wasn't what they thought.”

When the ArriveCan requirements took effect Nov. 30, 2021 at Canadian border crossings, several residents – particularly seniors – found they hadn’t filled the forms out correctly.

Staff at the public library in Calais, Maine, were overwhelmed in their attempts to help stranded travellers. The ArriveCan app also impacted events from proceeding between both communities.

St. Stephen resident Paulette Parker was reluctant to fill out an ArriveCan form, but now says she’s eager to cross the border.

“I have relatives in Bangor,” says Parker. “I have sisters there and I have a nephew.”

Some in the St. Stephen area already made a pledge months ago to stay on the Canadian side of the border, regardless of any ArriveCan changes.

“For whatever reasons, I choose to stay in Canada,” says St. Stephen resident Levonne Hastey. “Everything I want is here.”