Gordie Howe Bridge set to open Monday after Canada-only celebration

The Gordie Howe International Bridge, a new cross-border bridge between Windsor, Ont. and Detroit is expected to open Monday, following Friday’s Canada-only celebration.

The Canadian ceremony comes after the federal government cancelled a joint event with the United States due to President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats.

Following Trump’s announcement of 50 per cent tariffs on many Canadian goods taking effect in 30 days, Ottawa called a joint celebration with its southern neighbour “inappropriate”.

“Canada disinvited the United States of America to the opening of the Gordie Howe Bridge, which is fine, considering they are paying substantial tariffs to the United States, but the original deal on the bridge, which was terribly negotiated by a previous administration, no longer stands,” Trump posted on his Truth Social.

“We changed the terms of the deal so that the United States of America now gets 50 per cent of the profit. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Mark Carney called the bridge a symbol of co-operation between the two countries as it is jointly owned by Canada and Michigan.

“With our friends on the other side of this bridge in Michigan, I want to emphasize that I know Canadians love Americans and I know Americans love Canadians. And that bond will last for another 200 years. We’re each other’s top trading partner,” Premier Doug Ford says.

Ford says the bridge acts as a symbol of the opportunities that await workers and families on both sides of the Detroit River.

He says the two countries can work together to create a legacy, good paying jobs and making life more affordable for workers and their families.

READ MORE: Joint U.S.-Canada Gordie Howe Bridge ceremony cancelled after Trump tariff announcement

“President Trump has threatened new tariffs just this month but team Canada has never been more united,” Ford says.

“Working with Prime Minister Carney will never stop standing up for Ontario and team Canada.”

This project connects the two nations, named after Gordie Howe, a Canadian hockey player who played 26 seasons in the NHL, most of that time with the Detroit Red Wings.

Howe led the team to four Stanley Cups, scoring 801 goals and 1,049 assists over 1,767 regular-season games.

The bridge that is anticipated to last 125 years, carries a name that inspired Canadians and Americans, with deep roots and a shared history on both sides of the border.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge is intended to reduce congestion along the privately owned Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, which is too narrow for tractor trailers.

“In 2018, at the groundbreaking for this once-in-a-generation infrastructure project, I said ‘in the history of a community, in the story of a city, there are moments that become significant because they are informed by the past, celebrated in the present and have the power to truly shape the future,’” Mayor of Windsor Drew Dilkens says.

READ MORE: Canada faces new U.S. tariff threat over forced labour concerns

Dilkens says eight years later, this bridge has risen against a global pandemic that made crossing the border impossible and against a trade war that has amplified all this bridge stands for.

Every year, about a third of all trade between the U.S. and Canada moves between Detroit and Windsor, with about 2.5 million trucks carrying over $100 billion in trade goods using that corridor.

The new 2.5 kilometre bridge features six lanes, three Canadian-bound and three U.S.-bound.

Every hour, about 400 commercial vehicles are expected to cross the bridge.

“No bridge is designed solely by its height, its span or the engineering that brought it to life. Its true measure is found in the people that made it possible,” says Chuck Andary, the interim CEO of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority.

“Thousands of contributors overcame challenges, reached milestones and never lost sight of the goal. Hundreds of community members, business leaders and elected officials attended meetings, provided meaningful input and shaped the project.”

“Their efforts have created something that will serve Canadians for generations and stand as a lasting reminder of what we can accomplish together,” Andary says.

With Files From The Canadian Press

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