Officials Break Ground on the Gordie Howe International Bridge

At SEMCOG, some of our most gratifying days are when civic leaders come together to plunge ceremonial shovels into the ground. We celebrated one of those days earlier this week as Governor Snyder joined leaders from the United States and Canada to break ground on the Gordie Howe International Bridge.

For most folks around Southeast Michigan, the sight of dignitaries in business attire surrounded by cameras and construction equipment suddenly made the prospect of this bridge very real – the beginning of something big. A groundbreaking also represents the culmination of months or years of work. For those of us who have been involved in the project’s development, the bridge has been real all along.

Left to right: Philip J. Weipert, Oakland County Commissioner and SEMCOG Chairperson; Rick Snyder, Governor of Michigan; Kirk Steudle, Director of MDOT

SEMCOG focuses on improving quality of life in Southeast Michigan. We analyze data, project future needs, develop solutions, and collaborate with stakeholders to identify and address challenges. For something as big and transformational as the Gordie Howe Bridge (the trade partnership between the United States and Canada is essential to the economies of both nations), the story goes back decades.

Laying the foundation

Over 25 years, SEMCOG’s role in cross-border planning and collaboration helped get us to this point. Recognizing the economic and social importance of our joint region’s relationship, SEMCOG and the City of Windsor created a U.S.-Canada cross-border working group in the mid-1990s.

The group was composed of government and private-sector representatives from both Southeast Michigan and Southwest Ontario. We developed enhanced transportation planning processes by integrating plans and databases and jointly working to resolve issues. The need for a new U.S.-Canada crossing was identified through this effort and recommended to our federal, state, and provincial partners, who began moving the project forward.

In the early 2000s, SEMCOG began working on more specific technical and policy issues as bridge development advanced. We worked with stakeholders to evaluate options and select the type of crossing (a tunnel was also considered), identify the best location, determine how the crossing would connect to Southeast Michigan’s road network, and resolve countless issues. This year, we worked closely with the U.S. Department of Transportation and MDOT to complete the environmental analysis needed to begin construction.

Construction of the Gordie Howe Bridge is expected to begin in earnest before the end of the year. A large customs plaza will soon begin to take shape near Historic Fort Wayne. As you observe this progress over the next few years, remember the amount of analysis, planning, and collaborative teamwork it took to make this possible.