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The bridge, funded almost entirely by the Canadian government and now potentially just weeks away from opening, first saw major construction begin in 2018.

It is designed to expand the trade corridor between Canada and the U.S. over the Detroit River, with the resulting new border crossing expected to significantly boost commerce in the busiest land trade route in North America.

Each year, hundreds of billions of dollars worth of goods and freight pass through the Windsor-Detroit corridor — nearly a quarter of total trade between both countries. On a daily basis, the existing border crossings in the area carry roughly over US$300 million worth of goods and over 40,000 people per day, illustrating the massive value of the routes now and the potential of the new crossing.

Upon opening, the new bridge is expected to significantly reduce congestion and wait times on the Ambassador Bridge and Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. This will result in substantial economic benefits in terms of the cost savings of the movement of goods.

Trump’s critique zeroed in on Canada’s ownership structure, lamenting that America’s neighbour to the north owns both the Canadian and U.S. sides of the bridge. He claimed the bridge was built “with virtually no U.S. content,” citing a waiver granted during President Barack Obama’s administration that allowed Canada to sidestep U.S. Buy American provisions. He also singled out what he characterized as discriminatory Canadian policies, including dairy tariffs and the exclusion of U.S. alcohol from the shelves of Ontario liquor stores.

However, the U.S. president’s critique of the ownership structure and limited American involvement in building the crossing is not exactly true.

Under the 2012 agreement to pursue the project, the new crossing is jointly publicly owned by the Government of Canada and State Government of Michigan.

With that said, the Canadian federal Crown corporation of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA) is the Canadian-owned entity responsible for overseeing the design and construction of the bridge, as well as its future operations over the lifespan of the crossing.

Furthermore, WDBA pursued a private-public partnership to implement this project, selecting a private consortium called Bridging North America to design, build, and finance the structure, as well as operate and maintain it for 30 years. The consortium entails AECOM, Dragados Canada, Fluor Corporation, Aecon, and ACS Infrastructure.

Canadian and Michigan officials agreed to the approach of having the Government of Canada oversee the project largely because it agreed to finance and build the crossing after many years of stalled negotiations.

In the early 2000s and 2010s, efforts to replace the nearby aging privately-owned and operated Ambassador Bridge were complicated by disputes between bridge owners, governments, and concerns over funding. When private and state proposals faltered, the Canadian government stepped forward with a publicly backed plan to fund the project, form WDBA to manage it, and ensure construction moved forward.

Under the agreement, Canada took the lead on financing and construction because it offered a much clearer and quicker path to getting the bridge built without further costly delays involving the U.S. The Obama and Michigan administrations agreed to the arrangement because it served the shared interest of improving a critical trade corridor between the two countries, but the structure reflects Canada’s role as the primary funder and developer rather than a U.S.-led initiative.

Through WDBA, the construction cost is C$6.4 billion — up from the 2018 contract price of C$5.7 billion due to inflation, delays, and expanded project scope. This includes the cost of the cable-stayed bridge with six vehicle lanes and pedestrian and cyclist pathways, the 131-acre Canadian Port of Entry, the 148-acre U.S. Port of Entry, the tolling infrastructure, and a new major highway interchange connection on the Michigan site. Michigan contributed to the effort by coordinating some of the complex land acquisitions needed on the U.S. side, with Canada covering the cost of the U.S. land acquisitions and the new interchange.

Because Canada covered the cost of the project, WDBA will receive all toll revenues collected from both crossing directions to repay the cost of building the project. It will take the Canadian government decades to fully recoup the cost. The tolls will also cover the ongoing operating and maintenance costs, and the costs associated with the consortium’s concession agreement.

The project did receive a waiver from U.S. Buy America rules, but that waiver did not open the door to global materials sourcing; instead, it allows iron and steel to be supplied from either Canada or the U.S. The arrangement was designed to keep the project feasible and avoid delays, not to exclude U.S. industry. In practice, U.S. companies and workers have been involved in construction and support work, particularly on the Michigan side, even with Canada as the lead funder and manager.

The U.S. president extended his grievances to other areas, including recently announced Canadian trade talks with China, warning they could “eat Canada alive,” and even suggesting that such a deal could eliminate ice hockey and the Stanley Cup in Canada.

The bridge is named after Gordie Howe, the legendary Canadian ice hockey player widely regarded as one of the greatest of all time.

At the time of writing, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Ontario Premier Doug Ford have yet to publicly comment on Trump’s ultimatum.

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