Truck driver almost accidentally becomes the first person to drive over the Gordie Howe Bridge – Jalopnik

I haven’t written much about the Gordie Howe Bridge, despite the new span connecting Michigan to Canada being in my backyard. But I feel moved to write about it now because a truck driver says he accidentally drove onto the bridge and, honestly, I believe him, so I’m coming to his defense.

The incident occurred earlier this week when a truck driver was turned around looking for the currently open Ambassador Bridge, which is entering its 96th year of service as the busiest crossing with one of America’s largest trading partners. Instead, he navigated a bit southwest to the Gordie Howe Bridge, which is largely complete but won’t open to traffic until 2026.

The driver told Canadian police, who stopped him mid-crossing, that he was looking for the ambassador and had gotten lost in the unfinished complex surrounding the bridge landing site. Fox 2 News reports. You might be thinking, oh come on, he must have noticed that it was a little too easy to get through customs, what with the total lack of traffic and all. There are signs and all kinds of things that keep you from getting on the wrong bridge, right?

Here’s the thing; it’s not always easy to know where you’re going in the maze of roads and ramps that form the entrances to these bridges. The Gordie Howe Bridge (bottom of the image) is a little clearer than the Ambassador Bridge, but it’s still a confusing jumble of streets. And before you know it, you’re on a bridge with no passport and no fare to cross. At least at the entrance to the Ambassador Bridge there is nowhere to turn around, so you have to cross once you are in the flow of traffic. The result is angry customs officials and a lot of angry radio messages back and forth. Ask me how I know that.

Fortunately, the officials involved seemed to understand his confusion and allowed the driver to walk away without charge. No harm done. Had he managed to cross, it would be a fitting first for a crossing where many more confused motorists are likely to pass through the gates.

The Gordie Howe Bridge is the new, long-awaited span that connected Windsor, Ontario to Detroit, Michigan. The project was paid for almost entirely by the Canadian government, which named the bridge after a hockey player who was important on both sides of the Detroit River. Thanks to the efforts of the late Michigan billionaire Manuel Moroun, the project took extra time. to postpone and postpone the project. Moroun was the sole owner of the Ambassador Bridge, you may be shocked to discover this. It’s led to a flurry of street improvement projects in the long-neglected, industrial far south-west of the city, which is nice.