By David Lawder

WASHINGTON (Reuters). Canada’s trucker protesters chose a more ideal spot than the Ambassador Bridge that connects Detroit to Windsor, Ontario. Experts say it is the best place for them.

The 92-year old bridge was blocked for a fifth day on Friday by protesters demanding an end to Canada’s vaccine mandate for truck drivers, prompting Ontario province to declare https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canadas-ontario-province-declares-state-emergency-2022-02-11 a state of emergency, and auto companies to resort to costly air freights for crucial parts.

Ambassador has been a vulnerable trade chokepoint for decades, thanks to successful lobbying https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-detroit-bridge/after-long-fight-new-bridge-for-detroit-may-be-in-sight-idUKBRE9BA05920131211 against a replacement by the billionaire Moroun family that controls it and charges trucks $45 per crossing.

It carries approximately $360million per day in two-way cargoes, 25% of U.S. and Canadian goods trade. Its 1929 design limits traffic: only two lanes, no shoulders and outdated customs points make it difficult to move.

Construction of an expressway-only bridge over the Detroit River is expected to provide some relief. However, it will not be completed until 2024. This assumes that delays are avoided.

Dan Ujczo from Ohio, who specializes on U.S.-Canadian transport and trade matters said that “This is a reminder” that supply chain discussions are not limited to the ports at LA-Long Beach.

Ujczo explained that the Biden administration focused its efforts on unclogging U.S. ports. However, Ujczo noted that the Detroit-Windsor crossing as well as a U.S. – Mexico bridge at Laredo (Texas) are still the key U.S. border entry points to North American manufacturing.

NORTH AMERICA SUPPLYCHAIN DISRUPTED Canada’s dependence on exports is high, accounting for almost 32% of its GDP according to World Bank Data. China has been replaced as America’s top trade partner by the country in 2021.

Both exports and imports surged during the year from pandemic-depressed levels and Canada’s U.S. trade surplus more than tripled to $48 billion, according to U.S. trade data https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c1220.html released on Tuesday.

Trade crossing delays, as well as the shutdown of the Blue Water Bridge 65 miles north from the Ambassador have affected auto plants.

Dennis Darby of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters said, “Pretty much all those who are part of North America’s supply chain, regardless whether they’re getting parts or good from the States or sending goods to the States. Things are beginning to back up significantly.”

According to Dan Kelly, President of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, this economic disaster is now affecting small businesses that provide components for other manufacturers of auto parts and ingredients.

“Even before the pandemic, our border infrastructure had been incredibly fragile. It was not easy. Kelly stated that if anything happened, it was chaos.” We’re witnessing it in real-time now.

MILLIONS of TRUCKS, LONG DELIVERY

Bill Anderson, Director of University of Windsor’s Cross Border Institute, stated that the opening of Ambassador Bridge, 1929, facilitated a trans-border auto industry, as well as U.S.-Canadian economic integration.

Some 2.3 million trucks crossed last year, according to data https://www.bridgeandtunneloperators.org/index.php/trafficdata from the Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association, averaging out to 6,311 a day, or 263 an hour. Anderson explained that on certain days, the bridge could handle over 9,000 trucks, 500 per hour and can be clogged for hours with heavy traffic.

The Moroun family waged a decades-long battle to thwart construction of a rival crossing, persuading Michigan’s Republican-controlled legislature to oppose funding and mounting multiple legal challenges.

In 2012, Michigan’s then-Governor Rick Snyder accepted a Canadian government offer https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-canada-bridge/canada-michigan-announce-new-detroit-windsor-bridge-idUKBRE85E18X20120615 to fund most of the new bridge’s costs, and took the unusual step of using executive authority https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-detroit-bridge/after-long-fight-new-bridge-for-detroit-may-be-in-sight-idUKBRE9BA05920131211 to bypass the legislature.

The $4.4 billion Gordie Howe bridge under construction downriver from the Ambassador will cut 20 minutes off the crossing time, saving truckers $2.3 billion over 30 years, University of Windsor’s Anderson estimated in January https://www.cbinstitute.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Gordie-Howe-Internation-Bridge-Full-Report.pdf.

He said that the new cable-stayed bridge was named in honour of Canadian hockey legend, Canadian Detroit Red Wings, but it may prove more challenging to blockade due to its much more efficient customs placzas.

Anderson said, “It is a highway to-highway link and it will be quicker and far more resilient.” It will last over 100 years, and it will give international companies confidence in Canada.