Canada celebrates Gordie Howe bridge opening — without Michigan

Canada celebrated the Gordie Howe Bridge after decades of planning
The ceremony took place in Windsor, after Canada scratched a binational gathering amid an ongoing trade war
The bridge is expected to open for traffic on Monday

WINDSOR — As dozens of guests looked across the Detroit River from Windsor on Friday, Canadian leaders celebrated the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge as a once-in-a-generation project connecting two countries through trade, travel and a shared history.

The ceremony honored the late Detroit Red Wings legend whose name the bridge bears and marked the completion of a project more than two decades in the making.

“We are truly humbled by the immensity of this bridge and even more so by the immensity of this honor,” said Murray Howe, Gordie Howe’s youngest son.

As the six-lane structure dominated the skyline behind them, officials lined up in Windsor to hail what one described as “one of the most significant infrastructure achievements in Canada’s history.” The bridge opens to traffic on Monday.

Missing from the event: US and Michigan representatives. Canada scratched a joint gathering after President Donald Trump this week suddenly announced 50% tariffs on Canadian goods entering the US. A soloist sang the national anthem, “O Canada,” but the US anthem was not performed.

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“Our relationship has been challenged over the last few years, and President Trump is threatening tariffs just this month. But team Canada has never been more united,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford told the crowd, which applauded at times during his defense of the country.

signs for the Ambassador and Howe bridges hang over a highway — Exits from Interstate 75 are displayed for the Gordie Howe International Bridge and Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor, Ontario, with Detroit, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

More than 70% of Canada’s exports go to the US, making America its largest trade partner, and Detroit is the No. 1 port for truck traffic on the US-Canada border, according to the US Department of Transportation.

The Howe bridge will instantly create competition. For nearly a century, the privately owned Ambassador Bridge has been the only route for large commercial trucks moving between the US and Canada at Detroit. Businesses say the new span will be faster and less expensive.

‘Sounds pretty good’

Known as Mr. Hockey, Gordie Howe played 26 seasons in the National Hockey League, 25 of them with the Detroit Red Wings.

He led the Red Wings to four Stanley Cups in the 1950s. He retired from the NHL in 1971, briefly before joining the World Hockey Association to play with his two other sons Mark and Marty, winning two back-to-back championships in 1974 and 1975.

a man, surrounded by people, speaks at a podium with the Gordie Howe bridge in background. — Murray Howe, representing the Howe family, speaks during a Canadian celebration for the opening of the Gordie Howe International bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario Friday, July 24, 2026, in Windsor. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

After losing to the Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs in 1980, Howe retired for good at the age of 52, becoming the oldest NHL player in history.

The project has been decades in the making beginning in 2000, when both countries formed the Binational Border Transportation Partnership to study border traffic, which was released a year later.

More than a decade later, in 2012, then-Gov. Rick Snyder and Canada’s prime minister announced plans to move forward with the project. Canada committed to financing the bridge’s construction, while ownership would be shared by Canada and Michigan.

“When it was announced that the bridge would be named for our father, I showed Mr. Hockey some renderings, what the bridge would look like and where it would be built,” Howe said. “In classic Gordie Howe fashion, he just smiled and said, ‘well that sounds pretty good to me.”

The celebration unfolded against growing political tensions.

A man wearing a Canadian hockey jersey gives thumbs up — Gregor Robertson, Canadian Minister of Housing and Infrastructure gives thumbs up during a Canadian celebration for the Gordie Howe International bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario Friday, July 24, 2026, in Windsor. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

During the ceremony, Trump wrote in a social media post that the original agreement between the two countries no longer stands. Under that deal, Canada would receive all toll revenue to recoup its $6.4 billion investment, a process officials estimated would take at least 50 years.

Now, the US will instead receive 50% of the bridge’s toll revenue for the next 15 years.

“At this point, we don’t anticipate a lot of net revenue in the initial years from this bridge,” said Gregor Roberston, Canada’s minister of Housing and Infrastructure. “Across the whole financing of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, we anticipate being paid back in over 50 years.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.