Detroit-Windsor Tunnel Renovations Almost Complete
The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel announced today that its $21.6 million restoration project has been substantially completed and that it will return to regular service from Sunday, Feb. 3- Saturday, March 2. There will be scheduled closures over the next few months to complete some of the ancillary work advised Neal Belitsky, president of the Detroit Windsor Tunnel. The traveling public will be notified of these closures in advance.
The renovations began in January 2017 and included replacement of the 88-year-old tunnel’s concrete ceiling, as well as masonry, electrical work and other infrastructure improvements. The repair work was part of continued maintenance necessary because of natural occurrences tied to an underwater tunnel.
The project was co-funded by Detroit-Windsor Tunnel LLC and Windsor-Detroit Borderlink, limited.
Though the tunnel is returning to service 24 hours a day, seven days a week, vehicle height will continue to be restricted to 10 feet, 7 inches (3.25m), until some ancillary work is completed.
“We know that thousands of people rely on the tunnel every day, and we would like to thank them for their patience and understanding during this important renovation work. This work was important to ensure that the tunnel will continue to be the premier gateway between Windsor and Detroit for years to come.” – Neal Belitsky, President, Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
Throughout the renovation work, DWT and WBDL were committed to conducting the needed improvements while causing the least amount of disruption to the tunnel’s 12,000 daily and 4 million annual customers.
Detroit-Windsor Tunnel is operated by Detroit-based American Roads through a lease with the City of Detroit. That lease commitment began in 1998 and runs through 2040. The company has invested more than $65 million in infrastructure, service, safety and security improvements to the tunnel since entering the agreement with the city. The current renovations come on the heels of improvements to the Detroit and Windsor plazas that were completed in 2015.
The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel opened to traffic on Nov. 3, 1930, and is the only international, vehicular, subaqueous border crossing in the world. The tunnel is 5,160 feet (1,573 meters) long and is one of the 15 busiest border crossings and serves more than 4 million vehicles each year. That makes the tunnel a key player in the economic health of our region and one of the most important border crossings between the United States and Canada. It has also been recognized as one of the great engineering wonders of the world. Located between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, connecting the U.S. interstates to Ontario’s Highway 401, it is one of the fastest links between the two countries.
