The Gordie Howe International Bridge linking Detroit to Canada is set to open at the end of this month after American and Canadian officials resolved “outstanding issues” that delayed the original opening in June.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was slated for June 12, but was postponed indefinitely to allow Washington and Ottawa time to sit down and iron out a dispute. According to multiple reports on Friday, the issues had been resolved, and the record-breaking bridge will open for crossings before Aug. 1, but an official ribbon-cutting date has not yet been released.
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The 1.5-mile-long crossing will connect Detroit to Ontario, with its half-mile span over the Detroit River making it the longest of any cable-stayed bridge in North America. Roughly one-quarter of all trade between the two countries passes through the Detroit-Windsor gateway, making the new crossing a key piece of North American supply chain infrastructure.
The bridge has been under construction since 2018, when then-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican, brokered the deal with Canada, which agreed to finance the $4.4 billion bridge.
Canada and Michigan will jointly own the bridge, but President Donald Trump bemoaned in February that Canada was “taking advantage” of the U.S. and threatened to block its opening until the U.S. was “fully compensated.” The comments came amid wider trade disputes between the two countries and delayed what had been expected to become one of North America’s most significant new transportation links.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said there was “no big drama” between Washington and Ottawa when the bridge’s opening was postponed in June, and voiced optimism that the bridge would open soon and be beneficial for both countries.
Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers, who is backed by Trump, signaled Friday that an agreement had been reached, saying after speaking with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick that the deal would be announced within days.
The bridge is named after the late Hall of Fame hockey player Gordie Howe, who spent 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. It is set to join the privately-owned Ambassador Bridge as the second span connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario.
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The bridge is expected to provide six traffic lanes, direct highway-to-highway connections on both sides of the border, and expanded customs processing facilities intended to speed up the movement of people and goods between the two countries.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment.
