SAWYER, Mich. — A newly completed bridge linking Detroit to Canada is on track to open by the end of this month, after officials from both the United States and Canada worked out an agreement to settle the dispute that had been holding things up. Two people directly involved in the negotiations confirmed the deal, though they were not authorized to speak publicly ahead of a formal announcement.
Commercial traffic across the bridge is anticipated to begin before August 1st, according to two officials with knowledge of the situation. A date for the official ribbon-cutting ceremony has not yet been determined.
The opening had originally been planned for June 12th, but the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority announced a postponement, saying both nations still needed time to work through “outstanding issues.” The delay came after President Donald Trump had previously threatened to block the bridge from opening.
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers indicated during a Friday interview that a resolution was imminent. “I had a conversation with the secretary yesterday, Secretary of Commerce Lutnick, and the deal will be announced in the next few days,” Rogers said on WJR radio. “This is getting wrapped up. That bridge is going to get open.”
The stalled opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge became a flashpoint in one of the nation’s most closely watched Senate contests. Democratic candidate Mallory McMorrow, who has since withdrawn from the race, attempted to use the controversy to put Trump and Republicans on the defensive.
Back in February, Trump took to social media to demand that Canada hand over at least half of the bridge’s ownership to the U.S. government, along with other unspecified conditions — part of his wider trade tensions with Canada.
Canada funded the bridge’s construction. The project was originally negotiated by Rick Snyder, the former Republican governor of Michigan, with construction underway since 2018 at a total cost of nearly $4.4 billion.
The 1.5-mile-long span crosses the Detroit River, connecting Detroit with Windsor, Ontario. It is named in honor of the late Canadian hockey legend Gordie Howe, who played 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. The bridge is expected to serve as a major economic link between the U.S. and Canada.
Jointly owned by Canada and the state of Michigan, the toll bridge is designed to help relieve traffic congestion at the existing Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor tunnel.
Detroit and Windsor have shared close community ties for generations, with residents on both sides of the border regularly crossing for shopping and entertainment. Windsor had a population of roughly 230,000 as of 2021, and like Detroit, its economy is heavily rooted in manufacturing and the auto industry.
Most commercial trade between the two cities has historically moved across the Ambassador Bridge, a nearly century-old, privately owned crossing that sits closer to downtown Detroit than the Gordie Howe Bridge. The Moroun family owns the Ambassador Bridge, and federal campaign finance records show that Matthew Moroun donated $1 million to Trump’s super PAC earlier this year.
