(Canadian Press)
Delay is no longer an
option on a costly new bridge to break chronic congestion at Canada's busiest border crossing, says Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis, who lobbied U.S. officials on the massive project Tuesday.
"We
need to invest today, we can't wait," said Francis. "Unless we start investing for the long term, manufacturing comes to a screaming halt and companies no longer locate in Canada. These are jobs
across the country. It should have started a long time ago."
The Windsor-Detroit crossings have been called the "umbilical cord" to Canada's economy, with 12,000 trucks a day ferrying
goods worth $140 billion Canadian a year - 25 per cent of Canada-U.S. trade. Increased traffic and heightened security measures since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, have contributed to backups on
both sides of the border, at times stretching several kilometres. Yet there's still no consensus on a big fix. A new international bridge estimated to cost some $500 million would take at least until 2013 to
complete and maybe longer. "We're barely hanging on," said Francis, "and that's not good enough for industry."
Prime Minister Paul Martin and President George W. Bush discussed the
issue during Bush's visit to Canada last December and it will likely make the agenda at their meeting next week with Mexico's President Vicente Fox in Waco, Texas.
Border delays already cost Canada's
economy more than $8 billion a year and Americans are losing at least $5 billion, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce estimates. Francis, who met officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection as well as
state legislators, said they recognized the importance of adding a new link to the trade gateway.
In the interim, Francis is supporting a plan by New York transportation expert Sam Schwartz, who
proposed in January spending more than $1 billion on road, rail and tunnel construction that could be completed within five years. Schwartz's plan for a new bridge would cost extra.
U.S. and Canadian
officials plan to increase trade and traffic capacity at the border by 25 per cent this year, in part by hiring 30 new officers to speed things up. The FAST program to pre-approve commercial shipments is
also being expanded, with additional dedicated lanes at the Ambassador Bridge.
Meanwhile, Americans are about to start work on a project to streamline traffic in Detroit costing about $150 million,
said Francis.
Liberal Senator Jerry Grafstein, who has been pushing to beef up border points for years, blames "political inertia" and competing interests for the lack of action in Windsor
and Buffalo-Fort Erie, another major trade route. "There's been no expansion in over 40 years," said Grafstein, "and now we've got the additional problem of security. Before we were trying to
thread a rope through a needle. Now we're trying to thread a highway through a needle."
International border projects are facing 44 competing agencies on both sides, he said, with ownership
problems and environmental concerns complicating the issue. "It's economic suicide. We're retarding trade, losing jobs and causing pollution and triggering serious health problems," said Grafstein,
who is also co-chairman of the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group.
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