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Description:

The Canada-U.S. Bi-National Transportation Partnership that is planning the new Detroit River International Crossing is comprised of:

• Transport Canada;
• the U.S. Federal Highway Administration;
• the Ontario Ministry of Transportation; and
• the Michigan Department of Transportation.

The project is a U.S.-Canadian, I-75 to Highway 401, end-to-end solution consisting of five components: a new international crossing; the Canadian customs plaza; the U.S. border inspection plaza; the interchange between the U.S. bridge/plaza and Interstate 75; and the highway connector between the Canadian bridge/plaza and Highway 401.

It is the partnership’s intention to seek a public-private partnership (P3) for the bridge and plaza portions of the project and a separate P3 for the highway connection on the Canadian side.

Bridge

The new Detroit River crossing will be a six-lane bridge that will provide three Canada-bound lanes and three U.S.-bound lanes. The new crossing will accommodate future travel demand, both in terms of meeting capacity and providing flexibility to stream traffic on the crossing to improve border processing (e.g., a designated nexus/fast lane).

The new crossing will be constructed to link inspection plazas on the Canadian and U.S. sides of the Detroit River, and will be a key component of the new end-to-end transportation system that will link the existing Highway 401 to the U.S. Interstate system. The crossing will consist of a main bridge that will span the width of the Detroit River and will be designed to provide navigational clearances that meet U.S. and Canadian requirements. It will also include approaches to the main bridge that will connect to plazas in both Canada and the United States.

Selection of the bridge type will be made during subsequent design phases of this project. Neither bridge type requires piers to be placed in the Detroit River.

Customs Plaza

In Canada, border inspection plaza alternatives were developed in consideration of the need to provide improved border processing facilities to meet future travel demand and security requirements at the border crossing. The new plaza will be designed to serve the future (2035 and beyond) travel demands at the border crossing. Initial construction of the plaza may not include the fully developed plaza, as the plaza may be developed in stages. The initial construction of the plaza will be such that future expansion will be possible by constructing additional inspection or toll booths.

The plaza was developed in consultation with the Canada Border Services Agency and provides sufficient area for primary inspection lane booths and on-site secondary inspection of people and goods. The plaza also allows for dedicated NEXUS and FAST lanes, and provides for substantial improvement of border crossing processing capabilities.

The plaza will be situated within the Brighton Beach Industrial Park, bounded by the Detroit River, Chappus Street, Ojibway Parkway and Broadway Street. The plaza includes a total area of 202 acres (72.8 hectares); a total of 29 inbound inspection lanes; a total of 103 secondary inspection parking spaces for commercial vehicles; nine toll collection lanes; and storm water management features to control the quality and quantity of run-off rain water.

Ontario Access Road

The new access road will be a controlled access highway connection approximately 11 kilometres long located between the Border Services plaza and the provincial highway network. The connection is a six-lane urban freeway with interchanges, grade separations, road closings and service roads. The connection includes a combination of below-grade, at-grade and above-grade segments, and 11 short-tunnelled (or covered) sections. The width of the right of way varies and, where possible, existing rights of way will be used. Along the corridor, the maximum width of the new right of way, not including the existing right of way, is approximately 300 metres.

Ontario reached financial close last year with the Windsor Essex Mobility Group to design, build, finance, operate and maintain the Windsor-Essex Parkway. Construction of the parkway officially began in August 2011. In Budget 2010, the Government of Canada committed to providing up to $1 billion to fund 50 per cent of this project’s eligible capital costs through the Gateways and Border Crossings Fund.

Rationale for the Project

The Windsor-Detroit crossing is the busiest land border crossing in North America.

• It accounts for $130 billion (2006 Canadian dollars) of two-way surface trade.
• It accounts for 28 per cent of total Canada-U.S. trade.
• It consists of four crossings: the Windsor-Detroit tunnel, the Ambassador Bridge, the truck ferry and the Canadian Pacific Railway tunnel.
• The Ambassador Bridge alone handles 99 per cent of Windsor-Detroit truck traffic.
• In recent years, there have been increased traffic delays due to heightened security checks at the Canada-U.S. border. Inefficiencies at the border crossing directly affect costs, limiting the ability of Canadian and American businesses to compete internationally.
• Traffic is expected to increase over the next 30 years.
  

Project Phase:

The Detroit River International Crossing bridge and customs plaza are in the initial planning phase. On December 3, 2009, the federal environmental assessment for the new bridge, customs plaza and access road to the bridge — the Windsor-Essex Parkway — was approved. Construction started on the Windsor-Essex Parkway in August 2011.

Leading and Participating Departments and Agencies

Lead Department	Transport Canada
Contracting Authority	Deloitte
Participating Departments	Canada Border Services Agency, Public Works and Government Services Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment Canada

Prime and Major Subcontractor(s)

Prime Contractor

Deloitte 181 Bay Street, Suite 1100, Toronto ON  M5J 2V1 Direct telephone: 416-643-8382, Fax: 416-601-6690

Major Subcontractor(s)

Investment Grade Traffic and Revenue Forecast Wilbur Smith Associates 9500 Arboretum, Suite 360, Austin, TX, U.S.A. 78759 Air Quality Advisor Stantec 100-401 Wellington Street West Toronto ON  M5V 1E7 Cost Consultant Davis Langdon 1717 Arch Street, Suite 3720, Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A.  19103 Bridge Technical Advisor Delcan 625 Cochrane Drive, Suite 500, Markham ON  L3R 9R9 Environmental Management Plan: Morrison Hershfield 3585 Graveley Street, Suite 610, Vancouver BC  V5K 5J5

Major Milestones

List of Major Milestone	Date
An environmental assessment was launched, with 15 options considered.	February 2005
Options were narrowed to three potential crossing locations, three potential plaza locations and five potential access road designs.	March 2006
The technically preferred Ontario access road was announced.	May 1, 2008
The technically and environmentally preferred alternative for the crossing and plaza locations was announced.	June 18, 2008
The U.S. Final Environmental Impact Statement was published for final comment.	December 5, 2008
The final Ontario Environmental Assessment Report was submitted to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Final Screening Report was submitted to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency.	December 31, 2008
The U.S. Record of Decision was made public.	January 14, 2009
Ontario’s environmental assessment was approved.	August 24, 2009
The federal environmental assessment was approved.	December 3, 2009
Construction of the Windsor-Essex Parkway started.	August 18, 2011

Project Outcomes

The project is designed to achieve the following substantive objectives:

• provide new border crossing capacity to meet increased long-term international trade and travel demand;
• improve system connectivity to enhance the continuous flow of people and goods;
• improve operations and processing capabilities at the border; and
• provide alternative and secure crossing options (i.e., network redundancy) to mitigate the risks of any disruptions or blockages of crossing facilities in the region.

In pursuing the above objectives, the assessment and management of procurement options are to respect the following process objectives:

• provide a comprehensive and systematic approach to security, safety and emergency operations through the use of appropriate technology and processes;
• be consistent with the Government of Canada’s divestiture policy of a comprehensive risk transfer to an arm’s-length entity for financing, design, construction and operation of the crossing; and
• be financially self-sustaining (for capital, operating and maintenance costs) to the maximum extent possible so that the new crossing minimizes the need for public funds.

Progress Report and Explanations of Variances

• Initially, the Government of Canada approved $10 million in Team Funding for the Detroit River International Crossing in Budget 2007.
• The Government of Canada approved an additional $10 million in Team Funding for the Detroit River International Crossing in Budget 2010, from 2010-2011 to 2012-2013.
• In June 2008, Transport Canada received authority to enter into negotiations for real property for the Canadian half of the new international bridge and its Canadian customs plaza. Approval was also received for $200 million from the Gateways and Border Crossings Fund for the acquisition of the required properties.
• The Detroit River International Crossing is currently running under budget due to delays in property acquisition. Challenges with the negotiations with the industrial owners have caused Transport Canada to delay several utility relocation studies until the negotiations are further advanced. The Gateways and Border Crossings Fund funding has been extended until 2013-2014.
• It is too early to determine when the Detroit River International Crossing will be complete. It is estimated that the bridge will be operational five years after construction starts. Construction is currently at least two years away.
  

Industrial Benefits

The investment in new border infrastructure will have a number of positive economic impacts. Recently conducted studies concluded that the direct and indirect (e.g., materials, equipment, services, etc.) impacts of the entire border infrastructure project will lead to the creation of approximately 23,000 jobs, including approximately 13,000 direct and 10,000 indirect employment opportunities. This is particularly noteworthy since Statistics Canada has reported that the Windsor-Essex region has one of the highest unemployment rates in Canada. An increase in consumer spending is expected as an ancillary benefit of these jobs, as personal income and company profits improve in the region.

Additionally, the project will provide significant opportunities for local businesses to participate in construction and related work.

Transportation

The vast majority, 62 per cent, of Canadian and U.S. bilateral trade crosses our shared border by land. Each day, almost 36,000 trucks cross the Canada-U.S. border, close to one-third of those at Windsor-Detroit. This project will not only improve the efficiency of the border crossing in the region, but will also provide direct highway connections, thereby reducing costs associated with shipping, as well as greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants from idling vehicles.

Over the next 30 years, trade between Canada and the U.S. is projected to increase. Under high-growth scenarios, cross-border traffic demand could exceed the capacity of the present border crossings in the Detroit River area as early as 2015.

Economy

Given the significant interdependence of the Canadian and American economies, there is nothing more important to exporters and importers on both sides of the border than being able to ensure that traffic at the border flows efficiently and that the international supply chain remains strong.

Businesses from coast to coast in Canada and the United States depend on a reliable and secure transportation network. Manufacturing production depends heavily on the fast and predictable trucking of components, parts and finished products across the border, particularly between Windsor and Detroit.

It is estimated that the direct and indirect impact of the entire border infrastructure project on the province’s GDP will be $1.6 billion. Additionally, using Ontario’s two-thirds attribution ratio, it is expected that approximately 15,000 total jobs will be created in the Windsor-Essex Region, contributing an estimated $587 million to the region’s GDP.

Security

The Canada-U.S. Bi-national Transportation Partnership is working with border inspection agencies in both countries to ensure that the proposed border processing facilities meet future travel demand and security requirements at the border crossing. The plazas will be designed to serve future (2035 and beyond) travel demands. These new plazas are being developed in consultation with the Canada Border Services Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection Branch, to provide sufficient areas for primary inspection lane booths and on-site secondary inspection of people and goods. The plaza designs will allow for dedicated nexus and fast lanes, and will provide for a substantial improvement of border processing capabilities, including areas for permanent gamma ray inspection equipment.

With almost $2 billion (Canadian) daily in cross-border trade with the United States, keeping the trade system open and flowing efficiently is critical to ensuring both countries’ economic prosperity. It is equally critical to protect the border against potential threats to our health, security and economy. Redundant infrastructure will help keep the border open in case of incidents at other crossings.

1 As defined in the Policy on the Management of Projects.