US-Canada bridge reopens amid Covid protest
Windsor (Ontario), February 14: The busiest US-Canada border crossing reopened late Sunday after protests against Covid-19 restrictions kept it blocked for almost a week.
"The Ambassador Bridge is now fully open allowing the free flow of commerce between the Canada and US economies once again," said the bridge's owner, Detroit International Bridge Co. in a statement.
More than two dozen people were peacefully arrested, seven vehicles were removed, and five were confiscated near the bridge that connects the city and numerous Canadian automotive plants with Detroit, according to police in Windsor, Ontario.
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On Saturday, only a few demonstrators remained after police convinced protestors to move the pickup trucks and cars that had been blocking a border that accounts for 25% of all trade between the two countries.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden's government acknowledged the apparently peaceful end to the protest on Sunday, saying it had "widespread damaging impacts" on "people's lives and livelihoods" on both sides of the border.
The blockade had suffocated Detroit's manufacturers' supply chains, pushing Ford Motor Co (F.N), the second-largest manufacturer in the United States, General Motors Co (GM.N), and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) to cut production.
The bridge transports over $360 million in two-way cargo every day, accounting for about 25 percent of all goods traded between the United States and Canada.
According to IHS Markit data, the daily flow of vehicles and parts in 2021 is $141.1 million per day, thus the anticipated loss to the auto industry alone may be as high as $850 million.
The "Freedom Convoy" protests were started in the national capital Ottawa by Canadian truckers opposing a vaccinate-or-quarantine mandate for cross-border drivers.
However, it had morphed into a rallying point against broader Covid-19 curbs, carbon tax and other issues, with people joining in cars, pick-up trucks and farm vehicles.
On Sunday, the protest had entered its 17th day.
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-PTC News
