Windsor–Detroit Bridge Authority
| Type | Crown corporation |
|---|---|
| Key people |
|
| Owner(s) | Government of Canada |
| Website | wdbridge.com |
The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA; French: Autorité du pont Windsor-Détroit) is the Canadian federal Crown corporation responsible for administering the construction and management of the Gordie Howe International Bridge. Once the bridge is complete, the WDBA will also set and collect the bridge tolls.[1]
Lisa Raitt, then-Minister of Transport, appointed Michael Cautillo, Mark R. McQueen, William Graham, and Caroline Mulroney Lapham as the first board of directors of the WDBA.[2][3] Of the board members, Cautillo was appointed the authority's president and CEO and McQueen was appointed chairman of the board. While recognizing that the individuals first appointed to the body on July 30, 2014, all had strong financial expertise, the Windsor Star noted that none of them had local ties to the Windsor region.
Tom Mulcair, New Democratic Party leader and then-Leader of the Official Opposition in the Canadian Parliament, noted that three of the first four appointees were donors to the Conservative Party of Canada.[4]
On January 1, 2016, retired Provincial Liberal Minister Dwight Duncan was appointed to be the interim chair of the Board.[5][6] On December 14, 2016, he was appointed to a five year term as the Board's permanent chair.[7]
Tolls
[edit | edit source]For its first fourteen years the authority was the agency which decided the tolls charged to cross the bridge.[8] The agreements with Michigan and the United States gave the authority access to all the revenue from those tolls to repay the bridge's construction. However, in 2026, mere months before the bridge's opening, President Donald Trump made claims that Canada was trying to cheat the United States. He delayed the bridge's opening, insisting the two countries had to negotiate a new agreement. The new agreement required the authority to get agreement from the US government for any changes to the tolls greater than 10 percent per year.[9] The New agreement required the authority to pay 50 percent of the net profit from tolls into an economic development fund, controlled by the US government, for the first fifteen years of the bridge's operation.
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ "About the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority". Who We Are. Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority. Retrieved 2016-05-09.
- ↑
Claire Brownell (2014-07-30). "Canada, U.S. form new agency to push forward on Detroit-Windsor crossing". Financial Post. Archived from the original on 2021-02-25. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
The appointees to the Bridge Authority’s board are Michael Cautillo, Bridge Authority president and CEO; Mark McQueen, chairman of the board; William Graham, director; and Caroline Mulroney Lapham, director and daughter of former prime minister Brian Mulroney.
- ↑
Dave Battagello (2014-07-30). "DRIC bridge executive teams loaded with financial expertise, but nobody local". Windsor Star. Archived from the original on 2019-06-30.
Michael Cautillo of Toronto was named as CEO of the new Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA) – the managerial body for the Detroit River International Crossing. He has been a consultant on the project the past eight years with the financial firm Deloitte and has extensive experience in working on major infrastructure projects, including Highway 407 during 23 years spent with Ontario’s transportation ministry.
- ↑
"HYPOCRISY ALERT: Mulroney-style patronage from Stephen Harper's Conservatives". New Democratic Party of Canada. 2014-07-31. Archived from the original on 2025-01-23. Retrieved 2015-11-01.
All three are donors to the Conservative Party. Perhaps as homage to the previous king of Tory patronage, Conservatives have made Brian Mulroney’s daughter Caroline their latest patronage appointment.
- ↑
"Dwight Duncan named head of Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority". CBC News. 2016-12-14. Archived from the original on 2025-08-12. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
Duncan was made interim leader on Jan. 1, replacing former chairman Mark McQueen.
- ↑
"Duncan to lead Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority". Renew Canada. Archived from the original on 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
Mr. Duncan has served as interim chairperson of the WDBA since January 1, 2016, and the new appointment is for a five-year term.
- ↑
"Experienced leadership selected for the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority". Ministry of Infrastructure and Communities. 2016-12-14. Archived from the original on 2025-04-20. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
As Chair of the Board, Mr. Duncan brings considerable experience to this important position as a result of his diverse career accomplishments in both the private and public sectors and in depth knowledge of the Windsor-Detroit region.
- ↑
Emma Loop (2026-07-22). "How new Gordie Howe bridge deal compares with 2012 pact. Here's a breakdown of how things will work". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2026-08-06. Retrieved 2026-08-06.
Under that agreement, toll revenue will be used to pay operating expenses, such as maintenance, snow removal and staffing. Whatever is left over — if anything — will get split in half. Canada will get one half, and the rest will go to an economic development fund "established and solely controlled" by the U.S. government.
- ↑
"Proposed Agreement in Principle". Gordie Howe International Bridge. 2026-07-27. Retrieved 2026-08-06.
Canada will provide annual economic participation payments, outside the 2012 Canada–Michigan Crossing Agreement equal to fifty percent (50%) of net bridge and crossing related revenues for the first fifteen (15) fiscal years of bridge operations. Net bridge and crossing related revenues is all revenues collected with respect to the bridge, less all incurred operating costs of the bridge. Such payments shall be made to a United States-Canada Economic Development Fund, established and solely controlled by the Government of the United States.