Critical indeed, considering that over 10 million trucks cross Canada-U.S. borders annually with two-way goods trading valued at $570 billion according to Transport Canada’s 2012 statistics. “Trade with the U.S. grew rapidly between 1993 and 2000 before stalling during the 2001 recession,”.
“Road was the dominant mode, accounting for approximately 60 percent of exports to the U.S. every year. It has fallen to 45 percent in 2012.”
With close to 8,000 kilometres of highway, the Trans-Canada connects all 10 Canadian provinces with major trade crossing points into the U.S.’s interstate systems. The 83 year old Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor, Ontario with Detroit, Michigan, is the busiest Canadian border crossing with over 8,000 trucks per day, accounting for more than 25 percent of merchandise trade between the two countries. It’s expected that in the next 30 years, truck traffic will increase by 128 percent at the Ambassador Bridge crossing.
In June 2012, Canada and the U.S. announced an agreement to construct a new publicly owned bridge adjacent to the Ambassador Bridge. The new bridge will provide an alternative for handling capacity for the next 125 years while reducing delays and their associated substantial costs. The expected cost of the project is estimated to be $3.5 to $4 million. The Buy America legislation will not be applicable to the project. All iron and steel required for construction will be produced in either Canada or the U.S.