DETROIT — Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun feels both the U.S. and Canadian federal governments have violated his rights, and hopes the courts agree.

According to a story by the Associated Press, a suit filed in U.S. District Court by the Detroit International Bridge Co. (DIBC) claims U.S. and Canadian officials have violated a law that includes the right to build a new span.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Coast Guard rejected a bridge permit application from DIBC because land needed to build a new structure is actually owned by the City of Detroit.

The decision has put a wrench in DIBC’s plans, but the company insists it’s only temporary.

For years, Moroun’s company has planned to build a second span adjacent to the aging Ambassador Bridge and has been critical of the Detroit River International Crossing project, which is a bi-national agreement between the U.S. and Canada to build a new public span to connect Detroit and Windsor, Ont.

An amendment to Michigan’s Department of Transportation budget would have halted all state spending toward DRIC until the Legislature approves the entire project.

The House Appropriations Committee made a motion to reconsider the amendment last Wednesday – as well as an amendment to the 21st Century Jobs Fund – and both were rejected.