Windsor Councillor Encourages Residents to Support Local Economy by Using the Tunnel
A city councillor in Windsor, Ontario, is urging residents who want to support local businesses to choose the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel over the Ambassador Bridge when travelling to Detroit. The move comes amid concerns over the ownership of the two border crossings and the potential impact on the Windsor economy.
Councillor Angelo Marignani explained that the City of Windsor owns half of the tunnel and receives dividends from its operation. “So every time you take the tunnel, you’re buying local, you’re supporting local, and you’re supporting the residents of Windsor,” he said.
Marignani’s comments followed reports that the owner of the Ambassador Bridge, Matthew Moroun, met with a U.S. Commerce Secretary shortly before U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to block the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a new publicly owned crossing. Marignani emphasized he isn’t calling for a boycott of the Ambassador Bridge, stating he believes that would be “overstepping my balance,” but rather seeking to educate the public about the ownership differences.
“I am just voicing the concerns that my residents have brought up on how we can support our city and support our country,” Marignani said. “And I’m just showing them that This represents an option for them to choose.”
The tunnel’s CEO, Tal Czudner, echoed Marignani’s sentiments, noting that the tunnel recently paid a $5-million dividend to the City of Windsor, which contributed to the city achieving a zero per cent tax increase for 2026.
Currently, a single trip across the tunnel costs $8.25, or $5.90 with a prepaid Nexpress card. Crossing the Ambassador Bridge, however, costs $14.
“Fourteen dollars goes to, you know, the billionaire,” Czudner said, contrasting the financial flow with the tunnel’s contribution to the city’s coffers. “Or $5.90 helps go in the coffers of our company, which helps the City of Windsor when it comes to tax time and budget time.”
Czudner also indicated the tunnel has the capacity to handle an increase in traffic should more residents heed Marignani’s call. While the tunnel once saw around 20,000 vehicles daily in the 1980s and 1990s, that number has decreased to approximately 12,000 since the implementation of stricter border security measures requiring passports for cross-border travel in the wake of the September 11th attacks.
The debate over border crossings comes as the Gordie Howe International Bridge faces potential delays, raising concerns about the economic impact on both sides of the border. The Ambassador Bridge, privately owned by the Moroun family, has long been a point of contention, with its owners previously attempting to block the construction of a competing public bridge.
