Canada said on 10 July that the Gordie Howe Bridge dispute is ending, with the Gordie Howe international bridge set to open on 27 July after months of delay. The bridge had been blocked for months by the Trump administration, and the new date restores a crossing linking Detroit and Windsor.
Detroit and Windsor crossing
The bridge is a $4.7bn project between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, and it was first set to open earlier this year after eight years of construction. Canada paid for the bridge, and Michigan and the Canadian government are to jointly own and operate it once it opens.
For truck traffic using the Detroit River route, the date matters because the nearby Ambassador Bridge carries as many as 3m trucks a year and Moroun collects up to $100 on each truck. That older crossing is 93 years old, often heavily congested with truck traffic, and has been cited for safety violations in recent decades.
Matthew Moroun and Trump
Matthew Moroun owns the nearby Ambassador Bridge and donated $1m to a Trump political action committee in January. In February, he received a meeting with Howard Lutnick, and hours later Trump on Truth Social threatened not to open the Howe.
Democrats said the delay protected Moroun’s interests, and House oversight committee members Robert Garcia and Rashida Tlaib are investigating the appearance of a political favor. In a February letter to Moroun, Garcia and Tlaib wrote, “It appears that you may have used your influence as a donor to President Donald Trump to jeopardize American commerce to protect your company’s bottom line,” linking the delay to the owner of the existing crossing.
July and the toll terms
Canada’s 10 July announcement followed a ribbon-cutting ceremony that had been scheduled for early June and then abruptly cancelled. The opening now gives businesses and truck traffic a date after June deadlines passed, while the deal also says US government approval is needed if toll fees are lowered below regional averages.
What exact changes in the 10 July deal resolved the dispute over opening and toll-setting is the unanswered piece. What is clear is that the bridge now has a date, the toll terms have a federal check if they drop too far, and the fight over a delayed border crossing has moved from ceremony cancellations to an opening on 27 July.
