Gordie Howe International Bridge continues to take shape: Here's what to know
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
A feat of manpower is inching closer to completion on the city's southwest side and over the Detroit River.
The $5.7 billion Gordie Howe International, when completed with a total length of 1.5 miles and a main span of 0.53 miles, will have the longest main span of any cable-stayed bridge on the continent and the 10th longest in the world. This summer, crews in each country are building toward the sky, inching the bridge towers to 656 feet as of mid-July, just 66 feet away from the towers' final height of 722 feet, which they are expected to reach by year-end.
Crews are also installing anchor boxes along the towers. These boxes are what secure the cables to the towers. The bridge needs 216 cables total, 108 cables on each tower, to maintain stability and hold the entire structure to the tower through tension.
Where will the Gordie Howe Bridge be located?
According to the government of Michigan, the U.S. port of entry will be near Zug Island in Detroit, bounded by Fort Street to the north, Jefferson to the south and Green Street and Campbell to the west and east. At the 167-acre U.S. port of entry, located on the city's southwest side between the west and east Delray neighborhoods, 13 buildings and structures are coming, along with plumbing, drywall and steel installations underway.
When will the Gordie Howe Bridge be open to the public?
The bridge is anticipated to be open for public use in December 2024.
As we await its opening, here are some cool facts from the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority about this marvel of modern engineering.
More: Birmigham art dealer who faked lung transplant to rob seniors pleads guilty to $1.5M scam
What will the Gordie Howe International Bridge look like?
The bridge will consist of six lanes for vehicles, for inbound and outbound traffic, and one multiuse lane. The width of the bridge will be 123 feet, with nearly 12 feet dedicated to the multiuse lane for pedestrians and cyclists.
The multiuse lane will have a green surface that is skid-resistant and retro-reflective, according to the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority.
Who is building the Gordie Howe International Bridge?
As of March, more than 150 crew members from both the bridge authority and Bridging North America engineering teams and nearly 90 engineering students from Ontario have contributed to the bridge's construction, according to the bridge authority. Engineers have been working on the project since 2000, 18 years before construction began, to conduct traffic and environmental studies.
More: Detroit Zoo offers after-hours Bike Safaris: What to know
Community groups reaping the benefits
Bridge officials announced Tuesday that 14 groups, seven from each nation, were selected to receive $151,270 ($200,000 Canadian) in funding as part of the project's annual commitment to invest in community initiatives in hosting neighborhoods on each end of the bridge (Sandwich/west Windsor in Canada and Delray/southwest Detroit in the United States) between 2020 and 2024, as outlined in the project's $20 million Neighborhood Infrastructure Strategy.
Groups and projects selected for funding in the U.S. include:
Community Health and Social Services (CHASS): CHASS mercado summer program
Capturing Belief: the Southwest Detroit Portrait Studio
Trinity St. Mark’s Pantry and Gardens: food for homeless individuals
Mexican Patriotic Committee of Metro Detroit: Cinco de Mayo parade and fiesta
Hispanic Police Officers’ Association of Michigan-Detroit Chapter: grants for youth sports in southwest Detroit
Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition: Delray-Southwest engagement and family days
Clark Park Coalition: summer program kickoff and winter carnival
For more information on the Gordie Howe International Bridge, go to the bridge's website here.
Contact Miriam Marini: mmarini@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Gordie Howe International Bridge continues to take shape
