Canada will celebrate the Gordie Howe bridge’s opening today. Here’s what to know

A new cross-border bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit is set to open Monday, with a Canada-only celebration today marking the end of a project mired by lengthy delays and political tension.

The Canadian ceremony for the Gordie Howe International Bridge comes after the federal government cancelled a joint event with the United States in light of President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats. 

Ottawa said it would be inappropriate to commemorate the opening with its southern neighbour, as Trump announced he plans to impose 50 per cent tariffs in 30 days on many Canadian goods.

The move is said to be a retaliation against provincial bans on U.S. alcohol, Canada’s supply-managed dairy system and quotas on American cars.

Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier this week called the bridge, which is jointly owned by Canada and Michigan, a symbol of co-operation between the two countries.

Here’s what you need to know about the bridge’s construction, how much it cost and the controversies surrounding it.

What’s behind the bridge’s name?

The bridge is named after Gordie Howe, a Canadian hockey player who played 26 seasons in the NHL, most of that time with the Detroit Red Wings.

He led that team to four Stanley Cup championships, played in 1,767 career NHL regular season games, scored 801 goals and made 1,049 assists.

Former Michigan governor Rick Snyder said in 2015, when the bridge’s name was announced, that there was no one better than Howe to represent the two countries.

“Naming the bridge in honour of one of the most beloved public figures in Michigan and Canada reaffirms the impact this project will have for both countries,” Snyder said at the time.

Then-prime minister Stephen Harper said Howe was a proud Canadian who built goodwill between the countries, and he hoped the bridge would “continue this proud legacy.”

Why was it built?

The bridge was designed to alleviate congestion along the privately owned Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, which is too narrow for tractor trailers.

About a third of all trade between the U.S. and Canada moves between Detroit and Windsor and approximately 2.5 million trucks carrying more than $100 billion in trade goods use that corridor every year.

It stands about 46 metres above the river and about 220 metres high, making it the largest Canada-U.S. land port along the shared border and one of the 10 longest bridges in North America. The new 2.5 kilometre bridge features six lanes — three Canadian-bound and three U.S.-bound.

Four hundred commercial vehicles are expected to cross the bridge every hour.

The Saginaw passes construction on the Gordie Howe International Bridge connecting on the Detroit River connecting Windsor, Ontario and Detroit, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

How much did it cost?

Under the 2012 deal signed by Snyder, Canada agreed to shoulder the cost of the bridge’s construction and recoup it later from tolls.

Revenue will be shared with Michigan once Canada’s costs have been recovered.

The cost of the bridge was initially pegged at more than $2 billion, but that number continued to grow.

In 2018, the final reported cost was $5.7 billion, including $3.8 billion to design and build the bridge and another $1.9 billion to operate and maintain it for 30 years. About $560 million was spent before construction began.

When did construction start?

While the agreement to build the bridge was struck in 2012, ground was not broken until 2018.

Construction of the bridge faced numerous delays and the crossing is set to open six years after the first projected completion date.

In July 2024, workers linked up the Windsor and Detroit sides of the bridge. That work took six years, with about 2,000 workers on site each day.

The bridge is projected to last 125 years.

Did anyone oppose its construction?

The project has long faced significant pushback from members of the Moroun family, who own the competing Ambassador Bridge.

U.S. House Democrats are probing whether the billionaire family took action to obstruct the Gordie Howe bridge’s opening.

The family launched multiple legal challenges of the bridge and publicly appealed to Trump to revoke a presidential permit Barack Obama granted to start construction.

What does Trump say about the bridge?

The Trump administration endorsed the bridge project in 2017 during his first term in office.

This past February, Trump posted on social media that the U.S. needed to be compensated before he’d allow the bridge to open. He falsely claimed that the bridge was built with virtually no U.S. consent.

Carney spoke with Trump by phone soon after, informing him Canada paid for the construction of the bridge and that ownership is shared with Michigan.

Carney previously said that tolls will not be split with the United States until after Canada’s debt to build the bridge is paid back. 

But the prime minister admitted this week that he could have done a better job explaining the details of the bridge.

Canada will share half of net toll revenues with the U.S. for the first 15 years, with Canada’s payments made to a United States-Canada Economic Development Fund controlled by the U.S. government, according to the proposed agreement.

Conservatives have accused the prime minister of caving to the United States to get the bridge open and misinforming Canadians about the plan to split tolls.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2026.

Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.