The Gordie Howe International Bridge project is a once-in-a-generation undertaking. Not only will the project deliver much-needed transportation improvements for international travellers, it will also provide jobs and opportunities for growth to the Windsor-Detroit region and includes features that make this project truly distinctive.

The project is being delivered through a public-private partnership (P3). A public-private partnership is a long-term performance- based approach to procuring public infrastructure where the private sector assumes a major share of the risks in terms of financing and construction and ensuring effective performance of the infrastructure, from design and planning, to long-term maintenance.

There are four components to the Gordie Howe International Bridge:

  • Cable-stayed design
  • Six-lanes: three Canadian-bound, three US-bound
  • Total length: approximately 2.5 kilometres / 1.5 miles
  • Clear span of 853 metres / 0.53 miles - the longest main span of any cable-stayed bridge in North America
  • No piers in the water
  • One approach bridge on each side of the crossing to connect Ports of Entry in Canada and the US
  • Once complete, the Gordie Howe International Bridge will be among the top five longest bridges in North America.
  • A multi-use path designated as part of the Trans Canada Trail system will accommodate pedestrians and cyclists across the border
  • Size: approximately 53 hectare / 130 acre site
  • Inbound border inspection facilities for both passenger and commercial vehicles
  • Outbound inspection facilities
  • Toll collection facilities for both the US-bound and Canada-bound traffic
  • Maintenance facility
  • The footprint allows for the installation of further technology and the addition of expanded border processing facilities
  • Once constructed, this port will be the largest Canadian port along the Canada-US border and one of the largest anywhere in North America
  • Size: approximately 68 hectare/ 167 acres
  • Inbound border inspection facilities for both passenger and commercial vehicles
  • Outbound inspection facilities
  • Commercial exit control booths
  • The footprint allows for the installation of further technology and the addition of expanded border processing facilities
  • Once constructed, this port will be one of the largest ports of entry in North America
  • Local road improvements including:
    • 4 new road bridges
    • 5 new pedestrian bridges
  • Widened roads at key intersections to allow transport trucks to make full uninterrupted turns
  • Primary connecting ramps to and from the US POE
    • 4 bridges crossing the railway and connecting I-75 to the US POE
    • Reconfiguration of I-75 interchange ramps and service drives
    • Primary connecting ramps to and from the US POE