From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

Looks like Trump will need to step in and save another capitalist
billionaire.


Gordie Howe bridge undercuts Ambassador as toll war begins
Portrait of Grant Schwab Grant Schwab
The Detroit News
Updated March 11, 2026, 7:46 p. m. ET

Washington — Tolls to cross the not-yet-open Gordie Howe International
Bridge will be less than half the fees at the competing Ambassador Bridge
for both passenger vehicles and commercial trucks, setting in motion a forthcoming toll war between the two Detroit River crossings.

Commercial shippers that sign up for the Gordie Howe bridge's "Breakaway" discount toll program will pay charges of 6.90 U. S. dollars per axle, according to rates announced Wednesday by the new bridge's operators. The comparable rate for A-Pass and E-ZPass holders crossing the Ambassador
Bridge is 15 U. S. dollars per axle.

For typical five-axle semi-trucks, that represents a $40.50 cost advantage
for a truck to cross the new publicly owned Gordie Howe Bridge rather than
the privately owned Ambassador Bridge.

For passenger vehicles, the Breakaway toll on the Gordie Howe Bridge will
be $4.35 USD per crossing. The minimum rate available on the Ambassador is $10. The cheapest travel through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel is $6.75 to
enter Windsor and $4.70 to enter Detroit.
More: When does the Gordie Howe Bridge open in Detroit? What to know

The Detroit International Bridge Co. , the Moroun family firm that operates the Ambassador Bridge, did not return requests for comment on the Wednesday toll announcement.

Roy Norton, Canada's former Consulate General to Detroit from 2010-14, said the Gordie Howe operators set "reasonable rates, as compared to the jacked
up rates of the Ambassador Bridge recently. "

"I don't think that they played off the toll increases that the Ambassador Bridge, " he said in a phone interview. "I think they looked at the kind of standard fare, as it were, for that crossing over a lengthy period of time.
"

Norton pointed out significant toll increases at the Ambassador Bridge in recent years. The commercial rate was $5 U. S. dollars per axle for Class A trucks as recently as 2021 but has jumped by $10 since then.

He also said the GHIB rates were more consistent with the Blue Water
Bridge, some 90 minutes northeast of the Ambassador. That crossing's rates
on Wednesday were listed at $5 Canadian dollars per axle — about $3.68 in
U. S. dollars.
New toll rates add wrinkle to U. S. -Canada trade tensions

The toll announcement comes amid an international political conflict over
the bridge between President Donald Trump and supporters of the new span on both sides of the U. S. -Canada border.

Trump, after a lobbying campaign by Ambassador Bridge owner Matthew Moroun, has threatened to delay the opening of the $4.7 billion Gordie Howe International Bridge unless Canada meets his demands.

"I will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly,
Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we
deserve, " Trump said in a surprise Feb. 9 social media post.

The post came hours after Moroun, whose family has long fought the Gordie
Howe project, met with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to the
New York Times. Moroun also donated $1 million in January to a political action committee that supports Trump.

The Detroit International Bridge Co. spent at least $250,000 lobbying the Trump administration in the second half of last year after spending $2.8 million on lobbying efforts during Trump's first term.

Trump previously voiced support for the bridge, including a joint statement
in 2017 with then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The duo at the
time said they looked forward to the "expeditious completion of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which will serve as a vital economic link
between our two countries. "
More: Moroun donates $1M to MAGA fund days before Trump's bridge threat
Gordie Howe span would be a business drain for Morouns

Michigan economists have said it is difficult to put a number on how much
the Moroun family stands to lose when the Gordie Howe Bridge opens. Chris Douglas and Jason Miller, economists at the University of Michigan-Flint
and Michigan State University, respectively, both estimated that the
Morouns might lose roughly $30 million annually in toll revenue once the competing span opens.

The impact on their other related business ventures — such as trucking, warehousing and sales at the Ambassador Bridge duty-free store — is even harder to estimate.

"Since the Ambassador Bridge company is a privately held company, they
don't have to publish financial data, so there aren't any good data sources for things like profit from warehousing, " Douglas said in an email. He
added that "the diversion of traffic away from the Ambassador Bridge will likely cost them a few million or so in lost fuel and duty-free sales, but
the exact number is impossible to know. "

Traffic has already been declining at the privately owned bridge in recent years as commercial shippers seek cheaper options. Notably, crossings at
the cheaper Blue Water Bridge connecting Port Huron to Sarnia have recently hit record highs and surpassed commercial volume at the Ambassador.
More: 'Self-defeating': Trump's Gordie Howe bridge threat upsets businesses

Cost pressures for users of the Ambassador Bridge could be compounded
further by a new tax on the Canadian side of the border to manage trucking- related wear on an access road in Windsor.

"Windsorites are good people living and working in a city that is the international gateway between Canada and the United States, " Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens wrote on social media last week. "But we are tired of
shouldering the burden for fees and expenses that are not normally within
the purview of most municipalities. "

Dilkens has sought permission from the province of Ontario to levy a
temporary tax on commercial trucks that use the Ambassador Bridge,
according to CBC News, Canada's public television broadcaster. The tax
would begin on May 1 and last until the new bridge opens.

The move could further divert traffic away from the Ambassador Bridge and heighten pressure on the Gordie Howe Bridge opening.
Steps continue toward Gordie Howe's opening

Last August, the opening timeline was pushed to early 2026, with bridge officials citing unspecified potential delays with the U. S. Customs Port
of Entry in southwest Detroit. The bridge authority said last week it was starting to test the bridge complex's toll systems, customs inspection procedures and traffic management systems in anticipation of opening, then issued a statement to The Detroit News on Wednesday.

"While an opening date has not yet been set for the Gordie Howe
International Bridge, the project team is progressing well toward opening
of the Gordie Howe International Bridge this spring, " Windsor-Detroit
Bridge Authority spokeswoman Heather Grondin said in the statement. "The
exact opening date depends on the completion of our ongoing quality reviews and testing and commissioning activities. We will provide an update once
that information is available. "

Even as President Trump's threat looms over the much-anticipated Detroit- to-Windsor bridge, stewards of the project are continuing with final preparations to make the new international border crossing operational.

"Announcing our toll rates and launching Breakaway represent a significant step in preparing to open the Gordie Howe International Bridge to traffic. We've established a customer-focused toll program that helps travellers and businesses move goods, grow businesses, and cross the border toward their destination with flexibility and convenience, " said Chunk Andary, the
interim CEO and chief legal officer for the Windsor-Detroit Bridge
Authority.
More: How Moroun company lobbied Trump administration ahead of Gordie Howe Bridge threats
More: Top Michigan Republicans defend Trump's Gordie Howe Bridge threats

Andary's organization is a Canadian federal Crown corporation responsible
for administering the construction and future operation of the Gordie Howe bridge.

Bridging North America, the private group responsible for actually building and operating the bridge, also hailed the Wednesday announcement.

"As we complete testing and commissioning on the Gordie Howe International Bridge, the launch of toll rates and Breakaway marks another exciting step toward opening day in spring 2026, " CEO David Henderson said in a
statement. "Just as crews are fine-tuning every detail of the project,
we're ensuring a smooth start for all travellers and delivering on our commitment of a modern and efficient border crossing. "

The Breakaway toll discount program at the Gordie Howe bridge will make crossings "faster and easier, " according to a joint press release by the
two groups.

"Motorists in vehicles equipped with Breakaway tags will drive to any open toll lane. In less than five seconds, charges will be attributed to their account, the boom will lift, and they will continue on their journey, " the press release said.

The Breakway program will initially be available only for business accounts before expanding to passenger vehicles. The program will be free for businesses to join, including free and unlimited tags.

Full-price toll rates will be $5.75 USD for passenger vehicles and $8.75
USD per axle for commercial trucks.
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.sys.mac.advocacy

Looks like Trump will need to step in and save another capitalist
billionaire.

Gordie Howe bridge undercuts Ambassador as toll war begins

The Detroit News
Updated March 11, 2026, 7:46 p. m. ET

Washington — Tolls to cross the not-yet-open Gordie Howe International
Bridge will be less than half the fees at the competing Ambassador Bridge
for both passenger vehicles and commercial trucks, setting in motion a forthcoming toll war between the two Detroit River crossings.

Commercial shippers that sign up for the Gordie Howe bridge's "Breakaway" discount toll program will pay charges of 6.90 U. S. dollars per axle, according to rates announced Wednesday by the new bridge's operators. The comparable rate for A-Pass and E-ZPass holders crossing the Ambassador
Bridge is 15 U. S. dollars per axle.

For typical five-axle semi-trucks, that represents a $40.50 cost advantage
for a truck to cross the new publicly owned Gordie Howe Bridge rather than
the privately owned Ambassador Bridge.

For passenger vehicles, the Breakaway toll on the Gordie Howe Bridge will
be $4.35 USD per crossing. The minimum rate available on the Ambassador is $10. The cheapest travel through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel is $6.75 to
enter Windsor and $4.70 to enter Detroit.
More: When does the Gordie Howe Bridge open in Detroit? What to know

The Detroit International Bridge Co. , the Moroun family firm that operates the Ambassador Bridge, did not return requests for comment on the Wednesday toll announcement.

Roy Norton, Canada's former Consulate General to Detroit from 2010-14, said the Gordie Howe operators set "reasonable rates, as compared to the jacked
up rates of the Ambassador Bridge recently. "

"I don't think that they played off the toll increases that the Ambassador Bridge, " he said in a phone interview. "I think they looked at the kind of standard fare, as it were, for that crossing over a lengthy period of time.
"

Norton pointed out significant toll increases at the Ambassador Bridge in recent years. The commercial rate was $5 U. S. dollars per axle for Class A trucks as recently as 2021 but has jumped by $10 since then.

He also said the GHIB rates were more consistent with the Blue Water
Bridge, some 90 minutes northeast of the Ambassador. That crossing's rates
on Wednesday were listed at $5 Canadian dollars per axle — about $3.68 in
U. S. dollars.
New toll rates add wrinkle to U. S. -Canada trade tensions

The toll announcement comes amid an international political conflict over
the bridge between President Donald Trump and supporters of the new span on both sides of the U. S. -Canada border.

Trump, after a lobbying campaign by Ambassador Bridge owner Matthew Moroun, has threatened to delay the opening of the $4.7 billion Gordie Howe International Bridge unless Canada meets his demands.

"I will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly,
Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we
deserve, " Trump said in a surprise Feb. 9 social media post.

The post came hours after Moroun, whose family has long fought the Gordie
Howe project, met with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to the
New York Times. Moroun also donated $1 million in January to a political action committee that supports Trump.

The Detroit International Bridge Co. spent at least $250,000 lobbying the Trump administration in the second half of last year after spending $2.8 million on lobbying efforts during Trump's first term.

Trump previously voiced support for the bridge, including a joint statement
in 2017 with then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The duo at the
time said they looked forward to the "expeditious completion of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which will serve as a vital economic link
between our two countries. "
More: Moroun donates $1M to MAGA fund days before Trump's bridge threat
Gordie Howe span would be a business drain for Morouns

Michigan economists have said it is difficult to put a number on how much
the Moroun family stands to lose when the Gordie Howe Bridge opens. Chris Douglas and Jason Miller, economists at the University of Michigan-Flint
and Michigan State University, respectively, both estimated that the
Morouns might lose roughly $30 million annually in toll revenue once the competing span opens.

The impact on their other related business ventures — such as trucking, warehousing and sales at the Ambassador Bridge duty-free store — is even harder to estimate.

"Since the Ambassador Bridge company is a privately held company, they
don't have to publish financial data, so there aren't any good data sources for things like profit from warehousing, " Douglas said in an email. He
added that "the diversion of traffic away from the Ambassador Bridge will likely cost them a few million or so in lost fuel and duty-free sales, but
the exact number is impossible to know. "

Traffic has already been declining at the privately owned bridge in recent years as commercial shippers seek cheaper options. Notably, crossings at
the cheaper Blue Water Bridge connecting Port Huron to Sarnia have recently hit record highs and surpassed commercial volume at the Ambassador.
More: 'Self-defeating': Trump's Gordie Howe bridge threat upsets businesses

Cost pressures for users of the Ambassador Bridge could be compounded
further by a new tax on the Canadian side of the border to manage trucking- related wear on an access road in Windsor.

"Windsorites are good people living and working in a city that is the international gateway between Canada and the United States, " Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens wrote on social media last week. "But we are tired of
shouldering the burden for fees and expenses that are not normally within
the purview of most municipalities. "

Dilkens has sought permission from the province of Ontario to levy a
temporary tax on commercial trucks that use the Ambassador Bridge,
according to CBC News, Canada's public television broadcaster. The tax
would begin on May 1 and last until the new bridge opens.

The move could further divert traffic away from the Ambassador Bridge and heighten pressure on the Gordie Howe Bridge opening.
Steps continue toward Gordie Howe's opening

Last August, the opening timeline was pushed to early 2026, with bridge officials citing unspecified potential delays with the U. S. Customs Port
of Entry in southwest Detroit. The bridge authority said last week it was starting to test the bridge complex's toll systems, customs inspection procedures and traffic management systems in anticipation of opening, then issued a statement to The Detroit News on Wednesday.

"While an opening date has not yet been set for the Gordie Howe
International Bridge, the project team is progressing well toward opening
of the Gordie Howe International Bridge this spring, " Windsor-Detroit
Bridge Authority spokeswoman Heather Grondin said in the statement. "The
exact opening date depends on the completion of our ongoing quality reviews and testing and commissioning activities. We will provide an update once
that information is available. "

Even as President Trump's threat looms over the much-anticipated Detroit- to-Windsor bridge, stewards of the project are continuing with final preparations to make the new international border crossing operational.

"Announcing our toll rates and launching Breakaway represent a significant step in preparing to open the Gordie Howe International Bridge to traffic. We've established a customer-focused toll program that helps travellers and businesses move goods, grow businesses, and cross the border toward their destination with flexibility and convenience, " said Chunk Andary, the
interim CEO and chief legal officer for the Windsor-Detroit Bridge
Authority.
More: How Moroun company lobbied Trump administration ahead of Gordie Howe Bridge threats
More: Top Michigan Republicans defend Trump's Gordie Howe Bridge threats

Andary's organization is a Canadian federal Crown corporation responsible
for administering the construction and future operation of the Gordie Howe bridge.

Bridging North America, the private group responsible for actually building and operating the bridge, also hailed the Wednesday announcement.

"As we complete testing and commissioning on the Gordie Howe International Bridge, the launch of toll rates and Breakaway marks another exciting step toward opening day in spring 2026, " CEO David Henderson said in a
statement. "Just as crews are fine-tuning every detail of the project,
we're ensuring a smooth start for all travellers and delivering on our commitment of a modern and efficient border crossing. "

The Breakaway toll discount program at the Gordie Howe bridge will make crossings "faster and easier, " according to a joint press release by the
two groups.

"Motorists in vehicles equipped with Breakaway tags will drive to any open toll lane. In less than five seconds, charges will be attributed to their account, the boom will lift, and they will continue on their journey, " the press release said.

The Breakway program will initially be available only for business accounts before expanding to passenger vehicles. The program will be free for businesses to join, including free and unlimited tags.

Full-price toll rates will be $5.75 USD for passenger vehicles and $8.75
USD per axle for commercial trucks.
--- Synchronet 3.21d-Linux NewsLink 1.2