Efforts by the Detroit-Windsor Truck Ferry to secure government funding to continue operations in light of declining hazmat traffic have been unsuccessful, and the ferry will close at the end of September.

Ferry president Gregg Ward confirmed to TruckNews.com that “After September there will be no legal border crossing in Detroit-Windsor for flammable, corrosive, infectious, radioactive, and explosive materials, until the Gordie Howe [bridge] opens in later 2025. Also, there will be no local border crossing for trucks over 12-ft. wide. As well, during border emergencies, there will be no local outlet for critical freight.”

Ward added “We had hoped for a different outcome, as we believe the truck ferry provides important border crossing capacity and redundancy.”

Trucks carrying hazardous materials are not permitted to cross the Ambassador Bridge. Local traffic rerouting to the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, where they can cross, incurs hours of additional travel time.

Ward had asked the Canadian and U.S. governments to contribute $160,000 a month to help cover operating costs until the Gordie Howe Bridge is completed in 2025. This is to make up for a sharp drop in crossings seen since the pandemic.

Charter agreement ends

The ferry service has operated since Earth Day 1990, providing a safe 20-minute crossing for oversize loads and trucks carrying hazmat. The service’s charter agreement with the ferry provider ended March 31.

When it shuts down in the fall, Ward noted hazmat vehicles will have no legal border crossing options at Windsor-Detroit. The detour to the Blue Water Bridge adds about $500 in costs and five hours of additional travel. The timing is especially bad, noted Ward, as local battery and electric vehicle plants require hazmat shipments. Ironically, even construction of the Gordie Howe Bridge itself requires oversize shipments that are too big for the Ambassador Bridge.

“If the truck ferry is unavailable, many pieces for delivery between Detroit and Windsor will have to detour to the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, increasing transportation costs, highway wear and tear, and emissions and project delays,” Ward wrote to government in a brief. “There will be no redundant crossing for critical freight during border emergencies, which is needed to keep plants operating and people working. Plant closures have a broad economic impact and delay the supply chain.”