A presidential permit will allow the state of Michigan to wrap up a deal with Canada to build a new international bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor-Ontario.
As we hear from The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Rick Pluta, the new bridge could be operating by the end of the decade.
Governor Rick Snyder wants the new international bridge to help make Michigan the centerpoint of a North American trade region. He says the bridge will allow for more people and goods to move through what is already the continent’s busiest border crossing.
The new bridge would also compete with the existing Ambassador Bridge and the owners are still in court trying to stop the project. The governor says he’s not overly concerned.
“We’ve got a good track record of seeing success, and there’s tremendous support for this project, and strong legal grounds,” he says.
Snyder says now the state can start acquiring land and making engineering plans with an eye toward finishing the new bridge by 2020.