UPDATE: DELAYS IN CUSTOMS FACILITIES AT BOTH ENDS IS MOVING GRAND OPENING FROM FALL 2025 TO SPRING 2026.
New Gordy Howe Bridge will make it easier for Canada US leaders to squabble nose to nose
[PillartoPost.org]--After years of planning, litigation, and the slow poetry of steel rising above the Detroit River, the Gordie Howe International Bridge is finally entering its final stretch. From both banks—the Delray neighborhood of Detroit and Windsor’s Sandwich Town—the towers now stand complete, their harp-like cables strung in place. The once-familiar silhouettes of construction cranes have disappeared, leaving a clean line of concrete and cable that already feels like part of the skyline.
For commuters and truckers, the new span means fewer hours idling at the old Ambassador Bridge, fewer detours through clogged surface streets, and a long-overdue second option across the river. With six lanes for traffic and a separate path for pedestrians and cyclists, the Gordie Howe crossing is being built to handle the daily grind as much as the long haul of international trade.
On the ground, finishing touches are everywhere. Inspection plazas are being fitted with their canopies and booths, the lighting and safety systems tested, and the approach roads groomed to lead traffic seamlessly into the new span. The $6.4-billion project is said to be more than 95 percent complete, though the last miles in projects like these are always about precision—the testing, the certifying, the quiet rehearsals that ensure everything works on opening day.
For the surrounding communities, the bridge has already reshaped the landscape. In Windsor, a planned cultural pier and landscaped parkland will soften the industrial edge. In Detroit, long-promised improvements to roads and green spaces are beginning to give Delray a new face. While residents have carried the disruptions of construction for nearly a decade, many now see the payoff just ahead.
And then there’s the name—Gordie Howe, the hockey legend whose grit and longevity made him a folk hero on both sides of the river. The choice was deliberate: a nod to binational ties, to toughness, to the long game. The bridge that bears his name is designed to last a century. When it opens, the Gordie Howe International Bridge will stand as more than an overpass of steel and cable. It will mark a shift in how two border cities see each other—less as bottlenecks on a map and more as neighbors bound by a shared river and economy. For Detroit and Windsor, the bridge is a reminder that infrastructure can be both practical and symbolic: a structure built for trucks and travelers, yes, but also for the idea that connections matter as much as separations.
Who’s Behind the Gordie Howe Bridge?
Lead Designer
AECOM — global infrastructure firm with Detroit offices at the helm of the bridge’s design.
Bridge Architect
Erik Behrens (AECOM) — known for sculptural cable-stayed bridges around the world.
Design–Build Team
Bridging North America — consortium led by Fluor, Aecon, and Dragados Flatiron, handling construction from towers to road connections.
Canadian Port of Entry Design
Moriyama & Teshima Architects — Toronto-based studio shaping the inspection plazas and landscape.
Operations & Maintenance
ACS Infrastructure, Fluor, Aecon — responsible for the bridge’s upkeep once traffic begins to flow.
Gordie Howe Bridge Fast Facts
Total Cost CA $6.4 billion
Bridge Type Cable-stayed with two 722-foot towers Length 1.5 miles (2.5 km) across the Detroit River
Traffic Capacity 6 lanes — plus a dedicated pedestrian and cycling path
Ports of Entry One of the largest in North America, with state-of-the-art inspection plazas on both sides
Expected Opening Fall 2025
Lifespan Designed for 100+ years of service
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