Study: Two-week Ambassador Bridge closure would cost $2.3 billion

WINDSOR, Ont. (Sept. 15, 2003) — A two-week closure of the Ambassador Bridge could cost the economies of southeast Ontario and Michigan more than $2.3 billion, according to a study commissioned by a group lobbying for an alternative to the span.

The bridge, which connects Detroit and Windsor, Ont., is Canada’s busiest border crossing, accounting for 25 per cent of the country’s total trade value with the United States.

It is vulnerable to unplanned disruptions ranging from terrorism to a water main break, said the study’s author, Michael H. Belzer, Ph.D., of Wayne State University and the University of Michigan. A four-hour shutdown would cost the regional economy more than $21.3 million; a two-day traffic disruption would in excess of $180.8 million. The auto industry in Michigan and Ontario would be especially hard hit, Belzer said.

The study was commissioned by the Detroit River Tunnel Partnership, a group led by Canadian Pacific Railway. It wants to build a privately funded, high-capacity rail tunnel under the Detroit River, converting the existing twin-tube rail tunnel to truck tunnels.

The research report is available in its entirety. For a copy, contact John Parent at 519/562-2468.