According to the U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Canada, nearly 400,000 people cross the U.S.-Canada border every day. They include tourists, shoppers, imports/exports, people visiting family, and those who live in one country and work in the other. That makes a total of roughly 146 million crossings per year.
More fun facts! There are over 100 land border crossings between the two countries:
- There are 13 border crossings between Washington and British Columbia, where wait times can reach 3-4 hours during peak traffic periods.
- Idaho and British Columbia have 2 border crossings between them
- Montana has 13 land border crossings that lead into British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.
- North Dakota has 18 land border crossings along the 310 miles it shares with Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
- There are 8 land borders between Minnesota and Canada, via Manitoba and Ontario.
- Michigan has 4 land borders that go to Ontario.
- New York has 17 land border crossings along the 445 miles it shares with Ontario and Quebec.
- Vermont has 15 land borders into Quebec
- There’s 1 land border crossing between New Hampshire and Quebec.
- Maine has 24 land borders along the 611 miles it shares with Quebec and New Brunswick.
There are currently 21 bridges between the U.S. and Canada, and the ones that connect Michigan to Canada are continuously VERY busy. In fact, the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, is considered the busiest U.S.-Canadian border crossing – it’s North America’s #1 international border crossing and carries 25% of all trade between the two countries and plays an important role in auto manufacturing.
To help decrease the traffic on the Ambassador Bridge, construction began on the Gordie Howe International Bridge in 2018 (Howe was a Canadian who played hockey for the Detroit Red Wings. He died in 2016, after a long battle with dementia).
Artist’s rendering of Gordie Howe International Bridge
The U.S.$4.79 billion construction project was scheduled to be completed this year, however officials now say it won’t be done until September, 2025. They cite construction disruptions related to the Covid pandemic.
“Our project team is pleased that the impact to the construction schedule is limited to only 10 months beyond the original contracted completion date,” said Charl van Niekerk, chief executive of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority.
Feature Photo: Spend A Day Touring LLC / flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0 Deed
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