New Canada-U.S. bridge opening could be delayed by slow progress on border facilities

The opening of the new bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit could be delayed into 2026 due to delays completing the ports of entry on either side of the border, according to a report from the ratings agency S&P Global.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge itself was 35 days ahead of schedule when the report was released in April, it said.

But the contractor had missed two deadlines to hand the Canadian port of entry over to the Canada Border Services Agency and had not yet done so as of April. 

"The construction contractor and its subcontractor faced major attrition in a skilled labour force to the construction of a very large car battery manufacturing plant in the same region," the report, first reported by the Windsor Star, read.

Canada Border Services Agency requires possession of the building nine months prior to the bridge's opening to complete its share of the work, S&P said.

The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority did not confirm whether or not the facility had been handed over.

"As this is an international crossing with security implications for both Canada and the U.S., we are unable to comment on certain aspects of border agency operations," it said.

Border agencies need possession of facilities months before opening

The contractor has also missed two deadlines to hand over the port of entry on the U.S. side of the border, S&P said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection needs possession of the facility six months before the opening of the bridge in order to do its share of the work on it.

The bridge project dates back to 2012 when Canada and Michigan closed a deal on the public crossing.

But the two-and-a-half-kilometre bridge has faced several bumps in the road.

The owner of the Ambassador Bridge asked U.S. President Donald Trump to halt the project shortly after construction began in 2018 – after losing a court battle to stop the crossing from moving forward.

But construction continued until the pandemic hit, when the builder said the bridge opening would likely be delayed by about a year.

Last year, the project announced a revised price tag of $6.4 billion – $1.5 billion higher than the 2018 estimate.

The Canadian government is footing the entire bill for the bridge and will collect all the tolls until it's paid off. Then they'll split them with the United States.

The span was connected last summer, and the cranes came down earlier this summer.

But the bridge authority says it's too early to offer a specific opening date. 

"We have an estimated two per cent of construction work remaining," a spokesperson said in a statement. 

"As has always been the case, our priorities have been the safety of our workers and the quality of our infrastructure, and we will not compromise on either. In addition to our construction activities, our team is focused on installing final systems, testing, and commissioning."