Access to Manitoba parks to be free this year, province ending contract with American company that processed passes

Birds Hill Provincial Park

Manitobans will get to enjoy provincial parks for free in 2025.

As part of the budget announced on Thursday, the Manitoba government said provincial park access will be free for all for one year.

It was also announced the government would be ending the contract with an American company that handled the processing of licences and permits, such as the park passes.

A provincial spokesperson told CTV News the government originally signed the contract with Aspira in 2019, and the current contract expires in April 2025. The agreement saw Aspira collect a $4.50 administration fee per transaction.

From the 2020-21 fiscal year to the 2024-25 fiscal year, Aspira collected just over $7 million.

Lee Nolden, the owner of Smoke N Fish in Selkirk, Man., said his shop helps people process park permits and licences in-store, and it was frustrating to know that an American company was getting the money while he did most of the work.

He called this decision by the government good news.

“It seemed out of place to me why Manitoba would have to get an American company to handle that for them,” said Nolden.

He said he would have to call someone in the U.S. when there were problems with the website. He also wouldn’t get as high of a fee when helping people, even though he did most of the work.

“All the license vendors in Manitoba receive $1 for doing all the work. We have to have a dedicated computer, a dedicated printer, pay for all the ink and manpower to do that.”

In the budget, the government said it will look at Manitoba or Canadian options to handle passes and licences moving forward.

“So we can create good jobs and grow our economy while making sure Manitobans can explore our incredible province,” the budget reads.

Nolden said he is happy to know that the fees from these transactions will start to end up in the pockets of Canadian companies instead.

“It didn’t seem right to ship that money out of the country.”