Ambassador Bridge | |
|---|---|
 View from Detroit River near the Canadian side, with Downtown Detroit in the background, 2023 | |
| Coordinates | 42°18′43″N 83°04′26″W / 42.312°N 83.074°W |
| Carries | 4 lanes of  LECT connecting  Highway 3 in Canada to   I-75 / I-96 in the United States |
| Crosses | Detroit River, Canada–United States border |
| Locale | Detroit–Windsor |
| Official name | Ambassador International Bridge |
| Maintained by | Detroit International Bridge Company and Canadian Transit Company |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Suspension bridge |
| Total length | 7,500 feet (2,300 m)[1] |
| Longest span | 1,850 feet (560 m)[1] |
| Clearance below | 152 feet (46 m)[1] |
| History | |
| Constructed by | McClintic-Marshall Company |
| Construction start | August 16, 1927[2] |
| Construction end | November 6, 1929[2] |
| Opened | November 15, 1929[2] |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | 10,000+ trucks per day, 4,000+ autos per day |
| Toll | US$8.00/CA$11.00 (2024) |
| Location | |
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The Ambassador Bridge is an international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, the toll bridge is the busiest international border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume, carrying more than 25% of all merchandise trade between the United States and Canada by value.[3] A 2004 Border Transportation Partnership study showed that 150,000 jobs in the Detroit–Windsor region and US$13 billion in annual production depend on the Detroit–Windsor international border crossing.[4]
The bridge is one of the few privately owned US–Canada crossings; it was owned by Grosse Pointe billionaire Manuel Moroun, until his death in July 2020, through the Detroit International Bridge Company in the United States[5] and the Canadian Transit Company in Canada.[6] In 1979, when the previous owners put it on the New York Stock Exchange and shares were traded, Moroun was able to buy shares, eventually acquiring the bridge.[7][8] The bridge carries 60 to 70 percent of commercial truck traffic in the region.[9][10] Moroun also owned the Ammex Detroit duty-free stores at both the bridge and the tunnel.[11]
- ^ a b c Hatt, WK (1930). Detroit River Bridge. Pittsburgh: McClintic-Marshall Company. p. 4. OCLC 43148098.
- ^ a b c Hatt (1930), p. 7.
- ^ Lawder, David (February 11, 2022). "Analysis: Truckers in perfect spot to threaten cross-border trade". Reuters. Reuters. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ Detroit Regional Chamber (2006). "Detroit–Windsor Border Update: Part I-Detroit River International Crossing Study". Detroit Regional Chamber. Archived from the original on March 21, 2006.
- ^ Guyette, Curt (March 28, 2007). "Over the Border: Legislator Says Proposed Development Authority Would Create Jobs, Boost Economy". Metro Times (Editorial). Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved March 29, 2007.
- ^ O'Brien, Jennifer (August 3, 2011). "Bridge Brouhaha". The London Free Press. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
- ^ Voyles, S. (May–June 2009). "The Man Behind the Bridge". Corp!. Archived from the original on June 28, 2013.
- ^ "Wikileaks and the DRIC Smoking Guns". Corp!. November 2011. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- ^ "Traffic Data". Public Border Operators Association. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- ^ Federal Highway Administration & Michigan Department of Transportation. "Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Section 4(f) Evaluation". Partnership Border Study. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- ^ "Tax-Free Fuel Sales Are Bonanza for Ambassador Bridge Owners". Detroit Free Press. April 25, 2011. Archived from the original on January 28, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2011.