A Saint John councillor is pushing to have the city's Harbour Bridge shut down for a day to show the provincial and federal governments how badly repairs are needed on the aging bridge.

The Harbour Bridge needs $35 million in repairs, but the provincial and federal governments are locked in a war of words over who should help secure a loan for the work.

Coun. Gary Sullivan has a motion that he intends to present at a council meeting on Monday that could shut the Harbour Bridge down for a day.

He said politicians in Fredericton and Ottawa don't seem to get how important the bridge is to the city.

"When part of the Atlantic Gateway is shut down, maybe then the province and the federal government will see what kind of urgency this has created," Sullivan said.

The Harbour Bridge Authority took out a one-page advertisement last week in the local newspaper, explaining what will happen if they can't come up with the cash for repairs.

Bob McDevitt, chairman of the bridge authority, said they may have to introduce weight restrictions this spring, which means no transport trucks.

"It's going to be a mess for traffic in this area. It's going to be a mess in the Atlantic provinces with transport trucks and firms have to ship goods from Moncton to Fredericton to Woodstock to Houlton," McDevitt said.

McDevitt said lane closures will be next, and the situation will just get worse until the repairs are done.

Saint John residents frustrated

Adding to the frustration, according to Sullivan, is that people in Saint John are waiting for their bridge to get fixed, meanwhile the Princess Margaret Bridge in Fredericton is undergoing a massive overhaul.

"The provincial government is pouring millions and millions of dollars into a bridge in Fredericton, the federal government is in the billions of dollars for bridges in Ontario," Sullivan said.

"The Harbour Bridge Authority, all they started asking for was the ability to get a loan."

He said the federal and provincial governments must sit down together and figure out a solution so the bridge gets its repairs quickly.