Prime Minister Mark Carney says the Gordie Howe International Bridge between Ontario and Michigan will open by week’s end after earlier U.S. threats.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday the Gordie Howe International Bridge linking Ontario and Michigan will open “at the end of the week,” moving the long-planned Windsor-Detroit crossing toward launch after U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened earlier this year to block it.
Carney, speaking briefly to reporters as he entered a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill, described the opening of the multibillion-dollar bridge as “positive news” and framed it as both symbolic and practical for cross-border ties.
He called the bridge “a symbol but also a fact of co-operation between our countries,” adding that it would be “great for Canadians going across the border, Americans coming across the border, and for commerce.”
Carney did not specify exactly when traffic will begin using the span. The bridge is expected to provide a direct route for people and goods between Highway 401 in Ontario and Interstate 75 in Michigan, avoiding other congested crossings in the Windsor-Detroit corridor.
The project, paid for upfront by Canadian taxpayers at a cost of about $6.4 billion, has been a politically sensitive piece of border infrastructure. Trump said in February that he would not allow the bridge to open until the United States was “fully compensated,” while also making claims about ownership and U.S. participation in the project that were contradicted by the terms of the Canada-Michigan Crossing Agreement and project records.
Under that 2012 agreement, the bridge is jointly and binationally owned by Canada and Michigan, even though Canada covered the upfront construction costs. Canada is to collect toll revenue until those costs are recovered, after which Michigan is eligible for half of net toll revenues.
The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority, a Canadian Crown corporation, will operate the bridge, while an International Authority with equal Canadian and Michigan representation provides oversight. Ontario government data cited by CBC says the project supported 12,670 jobs in Michigan, including more than 8,800 American labourers and tradespeople working on U.S. components of the 2.5-kilometre span.
The opening would add a major publicly owned crossing near the privately owned Ambassador Bridge, whose owners have opposed the competing project for years. Democrats in Congress have said they intend to investigate alleged political interference in the bridge’s opening.
For now, the key unanswered detail is the precise opening time. Carney’s comments indicate that the bridge is expected to begin service before the week is out.
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