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spate of new infrastructure-improvement projects along the U.S.-Canada border are under way or were recently announced as both nations seek ways to streamline the movement of goods between the two trading partners. Increasing volumes of trade and closer scrutiny of freight at border crossings are fueling congestion problems at key trade routes from the West Coast to the New York-Ontario border. The problem is at least two-fold.
     Communities at key crossing points are rapidly growing weary of the caravans of trucks waiting to cross bridges or enter tunnels. Most business and residential communities near the crossings were not designed with such traffic backlogs in mind, and local pressure is mounting to address what many are referring to as environmental and quality-of-life issues. For their part, businesses are losing logistics advantages gained by locating near the U.S.-Canada border, if the goods are spending hour after hour on idling semis instead of in transit to a cross-border customer.
     Construction began in June 2005 on a new truck route to the International Bridge connecting Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and the upper peninsula of Michigan. The US$10-million project will enable trucks to bypass the downtown area en route to the bridge, on which more than 120,000 commercial trucks carry $2.8 billion of goods each year.

     The Government of Canada and the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority are in the midst of a three-year effort to reduce border congestion and expand infrastructure capacity at the Peace Bridge, linking Buffalo, N.Y., and Fort Erie, Ont. Construction began in May on the second phase of the plan, which involves the extension of a truck queuing lane and relocation of the primary and secondary customs traveler facilities and integration of bus processing facilities.
     Phase one in Canada included construction of a new truck road exiting the customs booths and implementation of a truck staging area and a Free and Secure Trade (FAST) bypass lane. The FAST program is a joint U.S.-Canada initiative that facilitates the movement of pre-approved goods across the border.
     In the U.S., phase one work continues, with construction of three new commercial customs booths. When complete, the improvements will result in an increase in commercial capacity and efficiency of 75 percent, according to Transport Canada.

Transport Canada www.tc.gc.ca U.S. Federal Highway Administration www.fhwa.dot.gov U.S. Customs & Border Protection www.cbp.gov

     In nearby Niagara Falls, work is under way to add a fifth lane to the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, which connects the U.S. and Canadian cities sharing the Niagara Falls name. Two new truck lanes were recently added to Highway 405, which is the main artery leading to the bridge on the Canadian side of the border. The bridge is Canada's fourth busiest border crossing, with more than 1 million trucks carrying $28.7 billion in goods across the Niagara River.

     At the Detroit-Windsor, Ont., crossing, which is arguably the busiest, feasibility studies are under way to gauge the need for a new way across the Detroit River, which links Lakes Erie and St. Clair. The Ambassador Bridge and an underwater tunnel have done the job thus far, but more capacity is needed to meet the demands of cross-border trade flows.
     Several initiatives already are under way on the Windsor side of the border, including local road improvements in the vicinity of Highway 401, the main highway leading into and out of Windsor; a truck marshalling facility in the Windsor-Essex region; and a study to evaluate a possible intermodal facility at Windsor Airport. In March 2004, the Governments of Canada and Ontario committed to investing $240 million in short- and medium-term projects to improve traffic flows to existing crossings and to address security and congestion issues in the area.
     On the West Coast, an extension of the Highway 15 FAST truck lane has been announced in Surrey, B.C., to ease congestion at the Pacific Highway Border Crossing into Washington State. The Governments of Canada and British Columbia are funding the $2 million project. "Traffic congestion costs our economy as much as $1.5 billion [Can.] a year," noted B.C. Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon at the April 2005 project announcement. "The Highway 15 extension will greatly improve traffic flow for commercial vehicles crossing the border, allowing products to get to their markets more efficiently."