Or: “From One Side Of The River To The Other”

The Gordy Howe Bridge is taking shape here in Southwestern Ontario. It is being built to add capacity to the busiest land border crossing between the USA and Canada, currently the Ambassador Bridge across the Detroit River, about a mile or so upstream towards Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario.

The Ambassador Bridge was opened in 1929, and really reached its capacity some time ago. The truck traffic between the two countries is immense, and amounts to billions of dollars annually, so being stuck on capacity has been an issue for quite a while now. The problem has been that the Ambassador Bridge is privately owned and operated, and the owner has spent the last twenty years trying to prevent the new bridge being built, with one injunction after another. The new bridge was eventually approved and work started about two years ago. It’s funded in part by the Government of Michigan, and mostly by the Canadian Federal Government, and tolls will be collected by Canada. Tolls apart, the private ownership thing has been such a limiter over the years, but in anticipation of the new, publicly funded structure, Canada has extended Highway 401 right to the new bridge, and Michigan is building a new link to the North/South I75 Highway, so access is going to be so much easier. Trade, and therefore money, should increase significantly, and the benefits are already being seen on the US side of the river, with significant rejuvenation of Detroit’s south side already happening.

Because taxpayers’ money has been involved, there are plenty of detractors saying the project is a white elephant, but if you’ve ever had to use the Ambassador Bridge on a weekday, you get some idea of how important the extra capacity is going to be.

The project itself is amazing, with the two towers that will hold the cable stays for the bridge deck rising 220m above the river, meaning you can see it absolutely miles away. Here’s a link to the project website, as that has all the real data: https://www.gordiehoweinternationalbridge.com/en

We went to have a look at construction a couple of months ago, and it’s seriously impressive. The thing is, progress is so fast that the project has moved on significantly since then, and what we saw is quite different to how it looks today.

The new bridge is due to open in late 2024, although I have my doubts that will be achieved. However, 2025 is still a good target.

When the bridge does open, we will be there to use it. I doubt I could persuade anyone to come with me, but there’s a foot and cycle path being built into the structure. How great it will be to stand above the centre of the Detroit River!

I may do another piece about the bridge, perhaps when the spans meet in the middle, which won’t be too far off now. The picture at the top is taken from drone footage, recorded during the week ending October 19th, but even in a weeks time, you’ll see the changes. Exciting times. Well, I think so.