Prime Minister Carney Confirms Completion of Canada‑Built Detroit River Crossing

TORONTO — Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that the newly constructed Canadian‑built crossing over the Detroit River, which former President Donald Trump had threatened to impede, will officially open later this week.

Earlier this year, Trump called for Canadian ownership of at least half the bridge and pressed for additional concessions as part of his broader trade agenda.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge, intended to link Windsor, Ontario, with Detroit, Michigan, was slated to become a key economic corridor between the two nations and was projected to open earlier this year, according to project documentation.

The structure is named in honor of Gordie Howe, the celebrated Canadian hockey legend who played 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings.

Former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, a Republican, helped negotiate the project, which is fully financed by the Canadian government to alleviate congestion on the existing Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit‑Windsor tunnel. Construction has been ongoing since 2018.

‘The bridge will indeed open by the end of the week,’ Carney told reporters as he entered Parliament, describing it as both a symbol and a concrete example of Canada‑U.S. cooperation.

‘It will benefit Canadians and Americans traveling across the border, as well as commercial activity,’ he added, calling the development positive news.

Trump had previously threatened to obstruct the project as the United States‑Mexico‑Canada Agreement comes up for review this year, and he has maintained a hard‑line stance, including the imposition of new tariff threats.

Carney, however, has publicly criticized what he describes as economic coercion by the United States.

Senator Elissa Slotkin, a Michigan Democrat, has praised the Canadian‑funded initiative as a “significant boon” for her state’s economic future.

Michigan, a key swing state that Trump won in both 2016 and 2024, stands to benefit from the new crossing.

‘Canada and the State of Michigan are 50/50 partners on the new bridge,’ Snyder wrote. ‘Canada financed the entire structure and will be repaid through toll revenue. Michigan and the United States hold their respective ownership stakes without having contributed any capital.’

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