News Release
For Immediate Release
PM announces that the Detroit River International Crossing will be named the Gordie Howe International Bridge
May 14, 2015
Introduction
Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that the future publicly-owned bridge between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, will be named the Gordie Howe International Bridge. He was joined by Diane Finley, Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Lisa Raitt, Minister of Transport, Jeff Watson, Member of Parliament for Essex, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, and members of Gordie Howe’s family.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge is expected to be completed and in service in 2020. The bridge will accelerate the flow of goods and services and provide a much-needed alternative at the busiest commercial land border crossing on the Canada-United States (U.S.) border, creating thousands of jobs and opportunities on both sides of the border. The bridge will feature a total of six lanes, associated border inspection plazas, and direct connections to Highway 401 in Ontario and Interstate-75 in Michigan.
Today’s announcement builds on the work done to date between Canada and the U.S. on the Beyond the Border Action Plan and Regulatory Cooperation Council Action Plan to strengthen our long-term security and trade relationship. These plans outlined concrete measures to facilitate trade and travel, improve security and economic competitiveness, and align regulatory approaches between the two countries.
Quick Facts
- Gordie Howe was born in Floral, Saskatchewan, and during his career was known as “Mr. Hockey”. He has distinguished himself as one of the most prolific and talented hockey players of all time.
- The future Gordie Howe International Bridge will be undertaken as a public-private partnership to allow the Government to leverage the expertise and innovation of the private sector to deliver this complex project on time and on budget.
- The Windsor-Detroit trade corridor is the busiest commercial land border crossing on the Canada-U.S. border, handling 31 per cent of Canada-U.S. trade carried by truck. In 2014, approximately 2.5 million trucks carrying over $100 billion in trade used this corridor.
- Canada and the U.S. have the largest bilateral trading relationship in the world, with two-way trade in goods and services of nearly $870 billion in 2014. Almost $2.4 billion worth of goods and services crosses the Canada-U.S. border every day – approximately $1.7 million every single minute.
- Since the North American Free Trade Agreement came into effect in 1993, Canada-U.S. trade has more than doubled.
- Canada is the top export destination for 35 states.
- The U.S. is a priority market under Canada’s Global Markets Action Plan.
Quote
“I am pleased to be here at this critical border crossing to announce that the future publicly-owned bridge between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, will be named the Gordie Howe International Bridge. Mr. Hockey, one of the greatest players in the history of the game, is a proud Canadian who led the Detroit Red Wings to four Stanley Cup victories, building extraordinary goodwill between our two countries. It is my sincere hope that this bridge, which bears his name, will continue this proud legacy by accelerating the flow of people, merchandise and services between our great nations for years to come.” – Prime Minister Stephen Harper
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