Ambassador Bridge

Avoid this bridge like the plague!!! Take the tunnel, go to pt Huron, SWIM if you have to. The absolute worst traffic control I’ve ever seen. Delays of up to 2 hours due to truck traffic. US Customs likes to do inspections on Canada bound vehicles. Poorly administered. An owner who’s attitude is «I’ve made my billions, why should I care» Overpriced

They stopped me at the border for having Colorado license plates, then literally asked me where my weed was. Not subtle at all!

This bridge is very nice. It is made from concrete and iron therefore it is strong enough for cars and trucks. It is a good way to move across the border between America and Canada.
If you have the privilege of being a US citizen who was born elsewhere, then you will easily get in Canada but your country will not welcome you when you get back.

Do NOT make a mistake and get in the truck lane on the Detroit side. They will put you in a long line of trucks and you will have to wait there forever to be x-​rayed! Seriously, you would much rather be at the dentist getting your front teeth pulled with no Novacaine. Better yet, take the tunnel and don’t give any money to Matty Moron.

Drove to Windsor from Detroit via the Tunnel and returned the same day via the Bridge. The Tunnel is 25 cents cheaper. The Tunnel was backed up almost as soon as we entered it. It moved very slowly. And a car broke down; cars were passing it on the wrong side of the road which was very dangerous. A truck came the opposite direction, did a 180 in the small space and pushed it out. All the lanes were open at the Canadian border. It took a while, but things moved. The Tunnel is downtown Detroit and puts you out into Windsor very close to the Casino.
On the way back, however, was not as pleasant. There view from the Bridge was gorgeous. There was no line whatsoever and we drove very quickly on the bridge – too fast. We could not take the photos we wanted because there was no traffic at all. The bridge was run down and I can see how it looks scary and you wonder if it is safe. But then off the bridge came the wait; a huge wait. Not all the lanes are open and people turn off their engines and get out and wait (just like they do in Europe). The Bridge is south of Detroit and out of the city and puts you out of the city in Windsor.
I do recommend trying both to get a feel or to say you have done both of them, but we will return using the tunnel.

What a bridge! Absolutely impressing! Was just driving to CAN to get the stamp in my passport and used the opportunity to take some pics… Toll of 5 $ was ok in my eyes (just seen from a tourist standpoint). Used the bridge during evening hour and the traffic was very low.

Canadians/​Windsorites have a love/​hate relationship with the Ambassador Bridge. Clearly the predominant thing in the city, it towers over the west end and is either a beautiful homage to structural engineering or an unsightly monster looming on the horizon.
Always busy, they’ve done their best to make it as easy as possible to cross an international border.
Although it is a major truck crossing, if you’re lucky enough… you’ll get a great view of both Windsor and Detroit while traversing its span.
The area under the bridge (at least on the Canadian side) has been reduced to what resembles an intercity fiasco. The owner of the bridge purchased numerous homes with the intent to bulldoze them and make room for a sister bridge, however the government has nixed this idea (and is constructing a new, larger bridge somewhere near LaSalle). Unfortunately, the majority of the homes are now boarded up and the area has become known for drugs, squatters, crime and is very unsafe and unsightly. On my visit at Christmas, a friend wanted to drive by to see the home she grew up in… it was boarded up and the roof was missing due to a fire. Homes where she played with childhood friends were also boarded up and children’s laughter replaced with the hum of traffic from above. An absolute disgrace to a once lively community.
At night, the bridge is stunning, with lights creating a ribbon of gold across the Detroit River.

I usually get great service here. Lines aren’t long if you go at nighttime. No one there past midnight. Cars have a special designated lane so you don’t have to compete with the hundreds of trucks.
On my way back from Chicago last time, the Canadian official was kinda rude and gave me a lecture on saving all my receipts and sarcastically asked «if it was my first time crossing the border». He’s right that I hadn’t kept ALL my receipts but the fact of the matter is, in twenty years of travelling back and forth between the States, no one has asked to see my receipts before.
Maybe he was just bored and wanted to annoy a completely non-​threatening individual.

Knowing what I know now, the next time I have to cross into Michigan, I’m either taking the tunnel or taking the Sarnia — Port Huron route, depending on my destination. If you want to know why, please read some of the excellent reviews below, especially those by Heather J or Kevin J and do your own research. Long story short, the dude who owns the bridge is quite the piece of work and the way he runs it is nothing short of despicable and this is coming from someone who is a proud and avowed capitalist. There are a lot of examples of the private sector stepping in to do something better and more efficiently than the government but this sure as hell isn’t one of them.
Yes the bridge is pretty nice looking and the views are pretty cool but it ain’t worth it. Despite its inherent beauty, it does look like it’s falling apart and feels that way, too. Also it has to be the most expensive border crossing that I can recall… if there’s one that’s more, I’d love to hear it. Plus it’s a bit of a nightmare getting on and off the thing (GPS didn’t help) so that’s another strike.
So yeah, avoid if you can. It seems like the right thing to do and I know I will… I’ll give it two stars because of the aesthetic but that sure doesn’t mean I’m going to use this crossing in the future if I can help it.

I have a long standing love-​hate relationship with this landmark. As a Canadian who commuted to work for years, I have endured long waits, and friendly customs inspections on my way to work.
The border is not a clean walk in the park, depending on your legal status, you are treated one way or another. I got to experience it as a visitor, TN visa holder, temporary green card holder, and finally getting my full green card. Each entry was different, and only got clean and easy with a green card.
This bridge is old, and it just has some new paint and asphalt slapped onto it. I am eagerly waiting for the new bridge to break ground and open up for business so I can say good bye to this place and it’s high crossing rates. The bridge toll has always been the highest I’ve seen around, compared to the Windsor/​Detroit Tunnel or even the Chatham bridge up north.
This border crossing is one of those things that you need to do if you want to get into the US or Canada. You’re not going to love it, it is just a bump in the road to where you’re going.
Safe travels.

The good: nice view. Beautiful day today!
Woa ! That the situation concerning this decrepit structure is allowed to exist certainly does not bode well for the future of the place formerly known as the great City of Detroit, now scaryville, America’s Pompeii.
Check out the Italia bakery in Windsor
on Éire St to soften the pain on the ride over.

Beautiful views of both sides of the Detroit River. Sometimes the truck traffic can be heavy depending on the time of day so plan your trip accordingly. I much prefer the bridge over the tunnel. Enjoy the views!

I never care about the wait. The customs guys here do a great job and have a difficult one. The bridge itself is terrifying. Its falling apart and with the semi trucks sitting on it when its busy even scarier. I would only cross through the tunnel. there is no way am going to pay that high of a toll to cross an unsafe bridge. Stay away!!!

The two best countries in the world. Crossing here is nice, I enjoy going to Detroit and this bridge gives you beautiful views. They say it’s the busiest border crossing for Canada-​US which wouldn’t surprise me! But all in all they are very efficient and I never find wait times crazy long!

Beautiful bridge. Connects Canada and the US at Detroit, Michigan. Fast and easy toll booths. Customs guy was nice to me but did ask alot of questions. That’s fine, doing his job I suppose.
I am looking forward to being on this bridge again soon.

This must be the most expensive way to do a land crossing between Canada and the U.S. I can’t think of another land crossing anywhere in the Great Lakes region that costs as much as the Ambassador Bridge!
What a mess it is to get to the bridge, from either side. I travel commercially across the border and it always takes too much time to get from one side to the other at this bridge. Usually, there is a lane closed on the bridge, sometimes two. Since the bridge is only 4 skinny lanes wide, lane closures always decrease the amount of traffic that can cross at any given time. Of course, with slower traffic comes traffic back-​ups.
I don’t shop at the duty-​free store, nor do I help line the pockets of the bridge company by buying fuel from them. Since they don’t pay road tax on the fuel, anyone who buys gas or diesel there is just cheating Ontario or Michigan out of badly needed money for road repair. Add the fuel tax from either side to the cost at the bridge pumps and you’ll see that you’re being ripped off.
Speaking of road repair, why can’t they get their act together with this bridge? It’s always being repaired!
For my money, I prefer to travel to the Blue Water Bridge and cross the border much more efficiently. The Blue Water Bridge is much cheaper, cleaner and much more efficient than the Ambassador Bridge will ever be. And for you folks who travel by car, just take the tunnel.

I’ve always been a tunnel guy. But this is a beautiful piece of architecture. Yes, Matty Maroun is a monopolist who might be sabotaging international commerce and who is duping the electorate, but that does not take away from the majesty of this blue behemoth (And, he is also a hell of a philanthropist, incidentally). It costs a few more quarters to get across here than the tunnel, but it is super convenient for reaching «South Windsor» and the University if you want to avoid going downtown.
A few logistical matters… You will likely have to bypass the entrance off 75 (closed), and take the detour at the Clark St. exit. When you head back to Detroit, you will end up paying the toll AFTER going through customs (different from how it is on the way to Windsor, and also different from how it works in the tunnel). Also, watch out for night-​time construction — it can get kind of tight with the workers and truckers, etc.
If only there were a dedicated walking/​biking bridge to Windsor… alas.

Didn’t realize this bridge had history until reading the Unilocal reviews. $ 4 to cross it if you pay in US currency; otherwise $ 4.75 Canadian. Given that the exchange rate is even that is weird. I had been to the duty free shop before and thought the prices were high; now I see why.
Every day I am in Windsor the trucks are lined up waiting for the bridge and Customs. Didn’t realize you could bypass the bridge. Nice view from it.

Well, as far as getting across the border quick, it is better than it use to be, but who are we really kidding? Matty Maroun is flick ! He is a dirty billionaire if you ask me, taking over 23^rd Street, boxing in the old bait store and putting that business owner on his knees. He fenced off a park just east of Fort Street until the residents of Southwest Detroit raised up and marched there to take the fence down. The police turned a blind eye in that case and I applaud the Detroit Police for it.
He would like to build another bridge next to the Ambassador Bridge, but you know what? It will never happen. The Canadians will never allow it on my motherland. Huron Church Road is nothing but a bunch of rolling semi trucks now and we want the damn trucks out of the town, hence a new bridge which we have offered to pay for. But then there is Matty with his relentless commercials on tv all telling lies.
Would you as the people of Michigan want semi trucks rolling up and down Woodward Avenue… well that is what we have now in Windsor.
I may cross this bridge if the Tunnel is backed up, but I will never patronize his duty free store or get gas here. I also applaud Rashida Talib US State Rep. for keeping this guy in check.
Build the damn ramps to I-​75 Matty, you said you would. The people of Southwest Detroit don’t need the trucks floating down Fort Street. Fort Street was all new concrete not too long ago and now it is all busted up, because he will not build the ramps to get the trucks out onto I-​75.
Prentis Edwards for Mayor of Detroit !!!
Matty, if you want to do something for Detroit, take your billions and refurbish the Michigan Train Station !!
Tool !!!

I have two ways to look at this bridge: as an iconic border crossing between Detroit and its sister city, Windsor; or as the private fiefdom of a jailed billionaire plutocrat who thinks he can do whatever he damned well likes with his little business and damn the rest.
Matty Maroun is a person whose ego is a punch in the face to anyone who walks by, and whose «Me Me Me» attitude sets my blood boiling. The scandals over the Ambassador Bridge and Maroun’s refusal to make good on the numerous deals he is legally and contractually obligated to provide leave a sour taste in my mouth. I don’t care if this thing was plated in gold, stationed with the Lost Legion, and gave out free iPads to everyone who crossed. I avoid it at all costs. I’ve seen the destitution inflicted on a neighbourhood already struggling with poverty, blight, and declining property values. A perfectly decent, good area declined because Maroun cheated plenty of property owners out of a decent payment for their house, and then screwed over the rest by funneling heavy truck traffic through the main streets.
Getting to the border off I-​75 is a nightmare. Signs point this way and that in violation of any sort of traffic planning. No on-​ramp exists from the highway on a straight throughway because Mr. Maroun insists you go through his little rat-​race maze and visit the Duty Free store (which he earns a killing on), and his gas station (which he’ll make a handsome fee off of), before you get to the bridge crossing itself and pony up $ 4 or so for the privilege of crossing. That’s one way, mind you, so round trip nets him $ 8 no matter what. Why on earth do I want to line the pockets of a scumbag and his abysmal corporate interests which have stood in the way of urban revitalization and closer ties to Canada for years?
The bridge itself is a testament to 30s architecture, upthrust struts stabbing above the Detroit River and a long span hanging with such fragility over the water. Fat bulbs hover like fireflies on a drowsy summer night to outline the shape. I can see the lovely architecture all the way from my 21^st floor office in Southfield/​Farmington, marking out the invisible border running like gossamer between the two companies. There always seems to be some form of construction going on to try to preserve the bridge or slow down the traffic; congestion can be a problem at peak hours, and getting up to and around the bridge on the Michigan side is a headache and a half.
For my money, I’m using the tunnel. I’d rather go downtown and at least patronize a few businesses down there, and flip the middle finger to Ambassador’s owner. Figure we can put up another nice suspension bridge in Downriver?