Overview
- The six‑lane bridge began carrying vehicles on July 27, with Gordie Howe’s family and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer among the early crossers.
- The Windsor‑Detroit Bridge Authority said roughly 7,500 vehicles used the span in its first 12 hours and posted tolls of CAD 8 per passenger vehicle and CAD 12 per axle for large commercial vehicles.
- Pedestrians and cyclists will be able to use a toll‑free, 3.6‑metre multi‑use path starting Aug. 5, connecting local trail networks on both sides of the river.
- Canada paid about C$6.4 billion to build the crossing that is jointly owned with Michigan, but a mid‑July agreement in principle to transfer 50% of certain “net bridge and crossing related revenues” for 15 years uses an undefined term that has drawn demands for full disclosure and parliamentary or congressional oversight.
- Early operations showed kinks, including overnight U.S. inspection lane closures that caused backups, and the new low‑cost route is expected to pull commercial traffic from the private Ambassador Bridge and ease truck congestion in Southwest Detroit over time.