Windsor-Detroit Bridge Faces Potential Setback

After plans of the construction of a new bridge connecting the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario and the United States’ Detroit were revealed in May of last year; reports have indicated that developers have been met with an impending task that could make it difficult for them to meet its proposed 2020 deadline.

One problem the developers are currently being faced with is the purchase of certain properties in both cities needed to facilitate construction. Dwight Duncan, the interim chair of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority, has explained to the Detroit Free Press that about 30 of the approximately 900 parcels (lots) needed in the Delray District of Detroit could cause potential problems if owners resist selling.

Another concern occurring in Windsor affecting the bridge’s development is ongoing negotiations with the provincial electrical company Hydro One. Negotiations are aimed at resolving the issue of Hydro One’s facilities and transmission lines that lie in the zone of the bridge. This could be another source of further delay as negotiations are already taking longer than expected.

The new bridge is said to cost an estimated $2.1 billion and will operate alongside the already established Ambassador Bridge. The bridge is being named The Gordie Howe International Bridge in honour of the late Gordon “Gordie” Howe. Howe was a Canadian hockey legend who once played for the Detroit Red Wings.

The delays have also stalled the release of the bridge authority’s formal Request for Proposals, a detailed bid document originally expected by the end of 2015.