Ambassador Bridge
The Ambassador Bridge is an international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, the toll bridge it is the busiest international border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume, carrying more than 25% of all merchandise trade between the United States and Canada by value. A 2004 Border Transportation Partnership study showed that 150,000 jobs in the Detroit–Windsor region and US$13 billion in annual production depend on the Detroit–Windsor international border crossing.
Ambassador Bridge | |
|---|---|
Ambassador Bridge from the Canadian side of the Detroit River | |
| Coordinates | 42.312°N 83.074°W |
| Carries | 4 lanes of LECT connecting Highway 3 in Canada to I-75 / I-96 in the United States |
| Crosses | Detroit River, Canada–United States border |
| Locale | Detroit–Windsor |
| Official name | Ambassador International Bridge |
| Maintained by | Detroit International Bridge Company and Canadian Transit Company |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Suspension bridge |
| Total length | 7,500 feet (2,300 m) |
| Longest span | 1,850 feet (560 m) |
| Clearance below | 152 feet (46 m) |
| History | |
| Constructed by | McClintic-Marshall Company |
| Construction start | August 16, 1927 |
| Construction end | November 6, 1929 |
| Opened | November 15, 1929 |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | 10,000+ trucks per day, 4,000+ autos per day |
| Toll | US$8.00/CA$11.00 (2024) |
| Location | |
The bridge is one of the few privately owned US–Canada crossings; it was owned by Grosse Pointe billionaire Manuel Moroun, until his death in July 2020, through the Detroit International Bridge Company in the United States and the Canadian Transit Company in Canada. In 1979, when the previous owners put it on the New York Stock Exchange and shares were traded, Moroun was able to buy shares, eventually acquiring the bridge. The bridge carries 60 to 70 percent of commercial truck traffic in the region. Moroun also owned the Ammex Detroit duty-free stores at both the bridge and the tunnel.