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Ambassador Bridge

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The Ambassador Bridge is an international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, the toll bridge is the busiest international border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume, carrying more than 25% of all merchandise trade between the United States and Canada by value.[3] A 2004 Border Transportation Partnership study showed that 150,000 jobs in the Detroit–Windsor region and US$13 billion in annual production depend on the Detroit–Windsor international border crossing.[4]

Ambassador Bridge
View from Detroit River near the Canadian side, with Downtown Detroit in the background, 2023
Coordinates42°18′43″N 83°04′26″W / 42.312°N 83.074°W / 42.312; -83.074
Carries4 lanes of LECT connecting Highway 3 in Canada to I-75 / I-96 in the United States
CrossesDetroit River, Canada–United States border
LocaleDetroit–Windsor
Official nameAmbassador International Bridge
Maintained byDetroit International Bridge Company and Canadian Transit Company
Characteristics
DesignSuspension bridge
Total length7,500 feet (2,300 m)[1]
Longest span1,850 feet (560 m)[1]
Clearance below152 feet (46 m)[1]
History
Constructed byMcClintic-Marshall Company
Construction startAugust 16, 1927[2]
Construction endNovember 6, 1929[2]
OpenedNovember 15, 1929 (95 years ago) (1929-11-15)[2]
Statistics
Daily traffic10,000+ trucks per day, 4,000+ autos per day
TollUS$8.00/CA$11.00 (2024)
Location
Map

The bridge is one of the few privately owned US–Canada crossings; it was owned by Grosse Pointe billionaire Manuel Moroun, until his death in July 2020, through the Detroit International Bridge Company in the United States[5] and the Canadian Transit Company in Canada.[6] In 1979, when the previous owners put it on the New York Stock Exchange and shares were traded, Moroun was able to buy shares, eventually acquiring the bridge.[7][8] The bridge carries 60 to 70 percent of commercial truck traffic in the region.[9][10] Moroun also owned the Ammex Detroit duty-free stores at both the bridge and the tunnel.[11]

History

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Aerial view of the bridge, 1941
 
Ambassador Bridge in 1979

The passage across the Detroit River became an important traffic route following the American Civil War. The Michigan Central and the Great Western railroads in addition to others operated on either side of the border connecting Chicago with the Atlantic Seaboard. To cross the Detroit River, these railroads operated ferries between docks on either side. The ferries lacked the capacity to handle the shipping needs of the railroads, and there were often 700–1,000 freight cars waiting to cross the river, with numerous passengers delayed in transit. Warehouses in Chicago were forced to store grain that they could not ship to eastern markets and foreign goods were stored in eastern warehouses waiting shipment to the western United States. The net effect of these delays increased commodity prices in the country, and both merchants and farmers wanted a solution from the railroads.[12]

The Michigan Central proposed the construction of a tunnel under the river with the support of their counterparts at the Great Western Railway. Construction started in 1871 and continued until ventilating equipment failed the next year; work was soon abandoned. Attention turned in 1873 to the alternative of building a railroad bridge over the river. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers commissioned a study of a bridge over the Detroit River. Representatives of the shipping industry on the Great Lakes opposed any bridge with piers in the river as a hazard to navigation. Discussions continued for the remainder of the decade to no avail; a bridge over the Detroit River was not approved. The U.S. Congress requested a new study for a bridge in 1889, but no bridge was approved. Finally, the Michigan Central built the Detroit River Tunnel in 1909–10 to carry trains under the river. This tunnel benefited the Michigan Central and Great Western railroads, but the Canada Southern Railway and other lines still preferred a bridge over the river.[13] Plans for a bridge were revived in 1919 to commemorate the end of World War I and to honor the "youth of Canada and the United States who served in the Great War".[14]

However neither Ontario nor Michigan wanted to finance a river crossing. Michigan automakers subsequently decided to take the initiative to connect the Midwest to central Canada. After they created a bridge company, the project got into trouble when a Toronto financier hired to sell its securities instead embezzled the money and ran off, before ultimately committing suicide in a prison cell after conviction for murdering a drugstore clerk. The bridge boosters turned to New Yorker Joseph A. Bower, a businessman who specialized in rescuing mismanaged companies. Bower succeeded in raising the necessary initial $12 million. "The only way things can be done today, is by private business," said Henry Ford, who backed the project.[15] The bridge was constructed with investment from Detroit business people incorporated as the Detroit International Bridge Corporation.

Much later Berkshire Hathaway acquired a quarter of the shares before selling to another investor in the company, local trucking entrepreneur Manuel Moroun. Moroun continued buying further, eventually privatizing it.[16]

Incidents

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Ambassador Bridge at night, in 2014

In April 1930, shortly after the bridge opened, a Canadian immigration inspector jumped to his death. The bridge has been used by other suicide jumpers. After it opened, high divers considered it as a venue for a record; but after measurements of the height and currents were taken into account, they were dissuaded and abandoned the attempt.[17]

On November 14, 2000, a scaffold on the bridge collapsed, sending three men into the Detroit River and leaving four workers dangling from safety harnesses. Jamie Barker, one of the workers who fell into the water, died.[18] An engineer, George Snowden, was disciplined by Professional Engineers Ontario for his role in the collapse; in 2012, a design that Snowden approved caused the Radiohead stage collapse in Toronto. Snowden's associate Domenic Cugliari was also involved in both collapses.[19]

Access to the Ambassador Bridge was impeded by protesters during the Freedom Convoy 2022 protests in Canada.[20] Protesters at the bridge blockaded it on February 7.[21] On the evening of February 7, traffic at the bridge came to a complete halt.[22] The blockade continued into February 8.[23] On the morning of February 8, officials declared the bridge reopened, but the blockade later resumed, pushing trips to the Blue Water Bridge between Sarnia and Port Huron.[a]

Design

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View of the bridge from the Detroit River, with Canada to the left
 
Aerial view of the bridge toward the south, with Canada at the top

The bridge over the Detroit River had the longest suspended central span in the world when it was completed in 1929—1,850 feet (560 m). This record held until the George Washington Bridge between New York and New Jersey opened in 1931. The bridge's total length is 7,500 feet (2,286 m). Construction began in 1927 and was completed in 1929. The general contractor and steel erector was the McClintic-Marshall Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[28]

The bridge is made up of 21,000 short tons (19,000 tonnes) of steel, and the roadway rises as high as 152 feet (46 m) above the Detroit River. Only the main span over the river is supported by suspension cables; the approaches to the main pillars are held up by steel in a cantilever truss structure.[29]

The bridge's only sidewalk is on the structure's southwest side. After the September 11 attacks, pedestrians and bicycles were prohibited from traveling across the bridge due to increased security measures.[30] For years prior to September 11, 2001, the sidewalk was closed due to ongoing maintenance projects and repainting.[31]

Originally painted gloss black, the bridge underwent a five-year refurbishment between 1995 and 2000, which included stripping and repainting the bridge teal.[32]

Granite blocks, originally used on the U.S. side, were given to the Windsor Parks and Recreation Department, and now grace many of the pathways in Windsor parks.[29]

Capacity

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Trucks back up on Ambassador Bridge from the American side of the Detroit River, August 2022

The Ambassador Bridge is the busiest crossing on the Canada–United States border.[33] The four-lane bridge carries more than 10,000 commercial vehicles on a typical weekday. The Gateway Project, a major redesign of the U.S. plaza completed in July 2009, provides direct access to Interstate 96 (I-96) and I-75 on the American side and Ontario Highway 3 on the Canadian side. The Canadian end of the bridge connects to busy city streets in west Windsor, leading to congestion.[34]

The privately owned bridge carries approximately 25% of trade between Canada and the United States.[35][36]

Transport Canada reported the following distribution for the five largest U.S.–Canada border crossings by trucks in 2011:[37]

  1. 24.4% for Windsor-Ambassador Bridge
  2. 14.4% for Sarnia–Blue Water Bridge, which links Port Huron, Michigan, with Point Edward, Ontario
  3. 11.4% for Fort Erie–Peace Bridge, which connects Buffalo, New York, with Fort Erie, Ontario
  4. 7.0% for Peace Arch Border Crossing, Pacific Highway/ Douglas, which links the U.S. State of Washington with British Columbia by land
  5. 6.6% for Niagara Falls–Queenston Bridge, which links Lewiston, New York, with Queenston, Ontario.

Additional bridge proposals

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An approach that had been constructed for a proposed twin span to the Ambassador Bridge

The Canadian and United States governments have approved the construction of the Gordie Howe International Bridge proposed by the Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) commission.[38] The new bridge further downriver between Detroit and Windsor will be owned and operated by the Windsor–Detroit Bridge Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Canadian federal government.

Manuel Moroun, owner of the Ambassador Bridge until his death in 2020, spoke out against this proposal. He sued the governments of Canada and Michigan to stop its construction, and released a proposal to build a second span of the Ambassador Bridge (which he would own) instead.[39] Critics suggest that Moroun's opposition was fueled by the prospect of lost profits from duty-free gasoline sales, which are exempt from about 60 cents per gallon in taxes even though the pump price to consumers is only a few cents lower.[11] On May 5, 2011, a judge dismissed the case, citing a lack of reasoning for it to proceed.[40] Moroun and his Detroit International Bridge Company contended that the new bridge would affect its proposal for a second span which would be built next to the Ambassador Bridge.

Michigan and Canadian authorities continued to support the Gordie Howe International Bridge proposal, as it directly connects the Canadian E.C. Row Expressway and the 2015 extension of Ontario Highway 401 (which runs concurrently as a shared highway for 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to the future crossing as the Windsor–Essex Parkway) with I-75 and I-96 in Michigan, bypasses Windsor's surface streets and reduces congestion. A twin span adjacent to the Ambassador Bridge, by itself, does not address Canadian concerns about traffic on Huron Church Road in Windsor. While many of the stop lights commonly cited have been removed by the expansion of Highway 401 which will connect to the downriver Howe bridge, the final approach to the Ambassador Bridge remains on overcrowded Windsor surface streets.[41]

In 2007, the privately owned bridge company was granted a permit by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to build a new bridge across the Detroit River adjacent to the existing span.[42] The permit expired in 2012.[43] The U.S. Coast Guard issued the bridge company a permit in 2016 to construct the new span. As of 2021, construction cannot proceed until current bridge owner Matthew Moroun addresses a "conflict" with the bridge's permit issued for the Canadian side by Transport Canada in 2017. The Coast Guard permit was granted on the condition that the existing Ambassador Bridge would be retained and rehabilitated, while the Transport Canada permit was granted on the condition that the existing bridge would be dismantled and removed.[44]

In 2022, the five year construction permit issued by Transport Canada expired.[45] Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra noted that conversations between the federal government, the City of Windsor and the bridge company were "ongoing".[45]

Controversies

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The bridge's private ownership has been controversial as the bridge carries approximately 25% of trade between Canada and the United States.[35] Although alternate routes exist, including the nearby Detroit–Windsor Tunnel, preventing monopoly status, the route is of significant value since it passes directly through major metropolitan areas. The aforementioned tunnel prohibits certain vehicles.

In 2010 and 2011, the Wayne County Circuit Court found the Detroit International Bridge Company in contempt for failing to directly connect bridge access roads to I-75 and I-96, and making other required improvements as part of the Gateway Project.[36] These improvements would normally be under the control of the state government; however, the Detroit International Bridge Company withheld the improvements as part of a negotiation strategy. [citation needed] At one point, Matty Moroun and his chief deputy at the Detroit International Bridge Co, Dan Stamper, were jailed for non-compliance with orders to complete the on-ramps.[46]

After years of legal battles, activism by local people against neighborhood truck traffic, and stalling by Matty Moroun, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) took over the I-75/I-96 on-ramp project and opened the ramps in September 2012 after a six-month construction period.[47] One possible motive for the Gateway Project delays was Moroun's desire to route traffic past his lucrative duty-free store and fuel pumps,[48] one of only two border locations to sell untaxed fuel (the other is International Falls, Minnesota).[11] Critics of the duty-free fuel operation objected that sixty cents from each U.S. gallon went not to paving Michigan's underfunded highways but instead directly to Matty Moroun.[49]

Operators of large trucks under the International Fuel Tax Agreement, which in theory should impose Ontario tax and partially refund Michigan tax on fuel purchased in Detroit and consumed on Ontario's Highway 401, may be disqualified for the Michigan IFTA refund, as the tax was never paid.[50] In a 2012 lawsuit, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development sued Moroun's company, Ammex, claiming it mislabeled motorcar fuels to advertise 93 octane while tests showed as little as 91.2 octane.[51]

In 2015, Windsor city officials criticized the decaying appearance of the bridge and called attention to the hazard posed by crumbling concrete from its superstructure. In response, Matt Moroun accused the city of attempting to thwart the company's efforts to rebuild or repair the structure because the Canadian government is supporting plans for a new bridge across the Detroit River downriver.[52]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Attributed to multiple sources. [24][25][26][27]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Hatt, WK (1930). Detroit River Bridge. Pittsburgh: McClintic-Marshall Company. p. 4. OCLC 43148098.
  2. ^ a b c Hatt (1930), p. 7.
  3. ^ Lawder, David (February 11, 2022). "Analysis: Truckers in perfect spot to threaten cross-border trade". Reuters. Reuters. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  4. ^ Detroit Regional Chamber (2006). "Detroit–Windsor Border Update: Part I-Detroit River International Crossing Study". Detroit Regional Chamber. Archived from the original on March 21, 2006.
  5. ^ Guyette, Curt (March 28, 2007). "Over the Border: Legislator Says Proposed Development Authority Would Create Jobs, Boost Economy". Metro Times (Editorial). Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2007.
  6. ^ O'Brien, Jennifer (August 3, 2011). "Bridge Brouhaha". The London Free Press. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
  7. ^ Voyles, S. (May–June 2009). "The Man Behind the Bridge". Corp!. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013.
  8. ^ "Wikileaks and the DRIC Smoking Guns". Corp!. November 2011. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  9. ^ "Traffic Data". Public Border Operators Association. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  10. ^ Federal Highway Administration & Michigan Department of Transportation. "Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Section 4(f) Evaluation". Partnership Border Study. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  11. ^ a b c "Tax-Free Fuel Sales Are Bonanza for Ambassador Bridge Owners". Detroit Free Press. April 25, 2011. Archived from the original on January 28, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2011.
  12. ^ Mason, Philip P. (1987). The Ambassador Bridge: A Monument to Progress. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. pp. 31+. ISBN 978-0-814-31840-9.
  13. ^ Mason (1987), pp. 32–47.
  14. ^ Mason (1987), p. 48.
  15. ^ Savage, Luiza Ch. (May 21, 2015). "Canada's Battle for a New Cross-Border Bridge". Maclean's. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  16. ^ "Forbes:January 12th, 2012:Joan Muller:Why one rich man should not own an international bridge". Forbes. Archived from the original on August 29, 2023. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
  17. ^ Mason (1987), p. 130.
  18. ^ "Engineers charged in fatal scaffold collapse". EHS Today. November 14, 2001. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  19. ^ Nicholson, Katie; Gilchrist, Sylvène (April 3, 2019). "Stage design in fatal Radiohead concert collapse called for parts that didn't exist, witness says". CBC News. Archived from the original on September 6, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  20. ^ McNish, Paul Vieira and Jacquie (February 8, 2022). "Truckers 'Freedom Convoy' Protests Disrupt Ambassador Bridge on U.S.-Canada Border". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  21. ^ "2nd day of Ambassador Bridge protest halts vehicles from leaving Michigan, limits Windsor to U.S. traffic". CBC News. February 8, 2022. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  22. ^ Hicks, Mark (February 7, 2022). "Police: Ambassador Bridge traffic to U.S. open after Canada protest". The Detroit News. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  23. ^ "Supporters of trucker convoy delay traffic at Canada's busiest border crossing". CTV News. February 7, 2022. Archived from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  24. ^ Murphy, Jessica; Debusmann Jr, Bernd (February 8, 2022). "Canada truckers protest: Ambassador Bridge reopened". BBC News. Archived from the original on February 8, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  25. ^ "2nd day of Ambassador Bridge protest halts vehicles from leaving Michigan, limits Windsor to U.S. traffic". CBC News Windsor. Windsor ON: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. February 8, 2022. Archived from the original on February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  26. ^ Hutchinson, Derick; Carr, Brandon (February 8, 2022). "US-bound traffic now fully open on Ambassador Bridge; traffic into Canada still closed". ClickOnDetroit. WDIV-TV. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  27. ^ LaReau, Jamie L. (February 11, 2022). "Ford, Toyota see more production disruption as bridge protest continues". Detroid Free Press. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  28. ^ Hyde, Charles K. (1993). Historic Highway Bridges of Michigan. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. p. 148. ISBN 0-8143-2448-7. OCLC 27011079.
  29. ^ a b "History of the Ambassador Bridge" (PDF). Detroit International Bridge Company. March 25, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 14, 2012. Retrieved March 25, 2010.
  30. ^ "Ambassador Bridge". detroit1701.org. Archived from the original on July 25, 2019. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
  31. ^ Freight Management and Operations. Ambassador Bridge Site Report (Report). Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
  32. ^ Rohan, Barry (October 11, 1997). "Paint Job Spans Nations". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2013.
  33. ^ "Chapter 4: The Watery Boundary". United Divide: A Linear Portrait of the USA/Canada Border. The Center for Land Use Interpretation. Winter 2015. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  34. ^ Detroit River International Crossing Study team (May 1, 2008). Parkway Map (PDF) (Map). URS Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 6, 2011. Retrieved February 25, 2010.
  35. ^ a b Staff (July 12, 2012). "The Proposed New US-Canada Bridge: Guide to the Controversy". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  36. ^ a b Michigan Department of Transportation v. Detroit International Bridge Company, 09-015581-CK (Wayne County Circuit Court 2011).
  37. ^ "Road Transportation". Transport Canada. March 5, 2021. Archived from the original on March 6, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  38. ^ "$1B Windsor-Detroit Bridge Deal Struck: A Saga that Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien Started in 2002 Takes a Major Step Forward". CBC News. June 15, 2012. Archived from the original on August 23, 2013. Retrieved June 15, 2012.
  39. ^ "Ambassador Bridge Boss Sues Canada, US". Ottawa: CBC News. March 26, 2010. Archived from the original on December 16, 2010. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  40. ^ Kristy, Dylan (May 5, 2011). "Sierra Club, Bridge Lose Bid To Derail NITC". The Windsor Star. Archived from the original on May 8, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
  41. ^ "A Second Detroit River Crossing: Just Build It". Detroit Free Press (Editorial). April 12, 2011. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
  42. ^ "Michigan Gives Thumbs Up to Twin Ambassador Span: Report". Today's Trucking. March 16, 2007. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved September 5, 2007.
  43. ^ "Despite Prop 8 Defeat, Fight For Private Bridge Continues". Mode Shift. November 21, 2012. Archived from the original on November 29, 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
  44. ^ Battagello, Dave (October 21, 2021). "Ambassador Bridge twin span facing permit woes, status in question". Windsor Star. Windsor, Ontario. Archived from the original on November 29, 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
  45. ^ a b Viau, Jason (September 1, 2022). "Ambassador Bridge permit for a 2nd span expires, fuelling uncertainty in west-end Windsor". CBC News. Archived from the original on July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
  46. ^ "Mich. Billionaire, 84, Jailed Over Bridge Dispute". USA Today. Archived from the original on February 5, 2013. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  47. ^ Brownell, Claire (September 21, 2012). "Ramps Linking Bridge to Michigan Highways Open to Traffic". The Windsor Star.
  48. ^ "Billionaire Owner of Ambassador Bridge Jailed". Maclean's. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  49. ^ "Report: Ambassador Bridge Owners Reap Profits from Tax-Free Gas Sales". MLive. Booth Newspapers. Associated Press. April 25, 2011. Archived from the original on August 29, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  50. ^ "The Folly of Tax-Free Fuel". Today's Trucking. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  51. ^ "Michigan Sues Matty Moroun's Duty-Free Company Over Gas Sales". Southfield, MI: WWJ-TV. Archived from the original on August 29, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  52. ^ Lawrence, Eric (October 15, 2015). "Ambassador Bridge rains concrete chunks down on Windsor". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on August 29, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2021.

Further reading

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