Ambassador Bridge

Coordinates: 42°18′43.02″N 83°4′26.82″W / 42.3119500°N 83.0741167°W / 42.3119500; -83.0741167
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Ambassador Bridge
Ambassador Bridge from the Canadian side of the Detroit River
Coordinates42°18′43.02″N 83°4′26.82″W / 42.3119500°N 83.0741167°W / 42.3119500; -83.0741167
Carries4 undivided lanes connecting I-75/I-96 and Ontario Highway 3
CrossesDetroit River
LocaleDetroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario
Official nameAmbassador Bridge
Maintained byDetroit International Bridge Company and Canadian Transit Company
Characteristics
DesignSuspension bridge
Total length2286 m (7500 feet)
Longest span564 m (1850 feet)
Clearance below46 m (152 feet)
History
Construction start1927
Construction end1929
OpenedNovember 11, 1929
Statistics
Daily traffic10,000+ trucks per day, 4000+ autos per day[citation needed]
Toll4.00 USD / 4.75 CAD
Ambassador Bridge is located in Michigan
Ambassador Bridge
Location
Map

The Ambassador Bridge is a suspension bridge that connects Detroit, Michigan, in the United States, with Windsor, Ontario, in Canada.[1] The bridge is owned by the Detroit International Bridge Co., which is controlled by Grosse Pointe businessman Manuel "Matty" Moroun.[2] The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel also connects the two cities. A 2004 Border Transportation Partnership study showed that 150,000 jobs in the region and US$13 billion in annual production depend on the Windsor-Detroit international border crossing.[3] It is the busiest international border crossing in North America in terms of trade volume: more than 25 percent of all merchandise trade between the United States and Canada crosses the bridge.

Design

The bridge, over the Detroit River, had the longest suspended central span in the world when it was completed in 1929—564 m (1850 feet), a title it would hold until the opening of the George Washington Bridge in 1931. The total bridge length is 2,286 m (7,500 feet). Construction began in 1927 and was completed in 1929. The architect was the McClintic-Marshall Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The bridge is styled in a mixture of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne architectural designs, with some Gothic architecture blended in. It is made primarily out of steel; however, the two main towers on each side of the river are made of a steel-silicon alloy which rise up from concrete piers. The towers rise 118 m (386 feet) above the river, and plunge 35 m (115 feet) below the surface of the Detroit River. The bridge is made up of 19,000 tonnes (21,000 short tons) of steel, and the roadway rises as high as 46 m (152 feet) above the Detroit River. Only the main span over the river is supported by suspension cables; the approaches to the main pillars are held up by steel in a cantilever truss structure.

The only bridge sidewalk on the south side used to allow pedestrians and bicycles, but security concerns after the September 11 terrorist attack had it closed.[4] When the painting is being done on the south side of the bridge span, the sidewalk helps accommodate equipment and decrease the length of the lane that is cordoned off for painting.[5]

Commerce

The four-lane bridge carries more than 10,000 commercial vehicles on a typical weekday. A major redesign of the U.S. plaza completed in July 2009 provides direct access to Interstate 96 and Interstate 75 on the American side and Highway 3 (and indirectly with Highway 401) on the Canadian side. Currently, traffic coming off the Ambassador Bridge on the Canadian side must travel through heavily populated residential and business areas on Highway 3 before accessing Highway 401. The Ambassador Bridge enhancement project calls for a twin span to be built across the Detroit River.[6]

Granite blocks, originally used on the U.S. side, were given to the Windsor Parks & Recreation Department, and now grace many of the pathways in Windsor parks [7]

In literature, film and television shows

The bridge was featured in the films Hoffa, 8 Mile, Crossing the Bridge, Grosse Pointe Blank, Sicko and Bowling for Columbine. It can also be seen in the opening scenes of the film Four Brothers and in an episode of the series Biker Mice From Mars ("The Motor City Maniac", 1994). It is also featured in the novel Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. It is featured in Sam Roberts' music video for the song "Detroit '67". Perhaps most-recently, however, the Ambassador Bridge (and nearby Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit) were prominently featured in the Life After People episode "The Road to Nowhere".

Photo gallery

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Stephane Fitch and Joann Muller (11-15-04).The Troll Under the BridgeForbes
  2. ^ Curt Guyette (3-28-07).Over the border: Legislator says proposed development authority would create jobs, boost economy Metro Times
  3. ^ Detroit Regional Chamber (2006) Detroit/Windsor Border Update: Part I-Detroit River International Crossing Study
  4. ^ detroit1701.org: Ambassador Bridge
  5. ^ US Federal Highway Administration Freight Management and Operations - Ambassador Bridge Site Report
  6. ^ (03-16-2007).Michigan gives thumbs up to twin Ambassador span: report Today's Trucking Online
  7. ^ (03-25-2010).[1] History of the Ambassador bridge

References

  • Fisher, Dale (2003). Building Michigan: A Tribute to Michigan's Construction Industry. Grass Lake, MI: Eyry of the Eagle Publishing. ISBN 1891143247.
  • Mason, Philip P. (1987). Ambassador Bridge: A Monument to Progress. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0814318401.

External links