Ambassador Bridge truck traffic causing frustrations near university

People who frequent Wyandotte Street West near the University of Windsor are grappling with heavy truck traffic.

When cross-border traffic gets plugged up along Huron Church Road, the main artery to the Ambassador Bridge, tractor trailers often use an entrance to the bridge adjacent to the University of Windsor as a detour, using Wyandotte Street West sintead.

Yahia Hassan is a student at the university. Though the trucks that cut through the campus are using a designated truck route, he says the city should consider finding ways to move the traffic to another area.

"I think they should have their own route, man," Hassan said. "Because it causes so much traffic jam and people are trying to get places here. Get to school, get to work, like this is a busy area, They should not be using this road, in opinion at least."

The bridge is the busiest commercial crossing in North America. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the company that operates it reported delays for traffic entering Detroit.

On Tuesday afternoon, a line of tractor trailers on Wyandotte Street West stretched more than a kilometre back from  the bridge entrance.

Huron Church Road was again crammed with traffic Wednesday afternoon, so some trucks were again making the detour on Wyandotte in the hopes of saving time.

Businesses have also been sounding off about the truck route for years, according to a barista who works in the area.

Caleb Farrugia, from Green Bean Cafe on Wyandotte, says he's reached out to the city on more than one occasion to highlight his concern. 

"We feel like we're being held hostage down here on the west end of Windsor. It's a consistent issue of trucks backed up down the road," said Farruglia, who says the traffic splits the neighbourhood and is a safety concern.

The executive director of operations for the city, Shawna Boakes, says the city works with Windsor police to try to alleviate issues like trucks blocking intersections.

Boakes says the city is set to embark on a review of existing truck routes this fall, and it will include the area around the Ambassador Bridge, though it's not clear whether the section of Wyandotte near the university would be added.

She says Wyandotte is considered an arterial road.

"It is a way for vehicles, both trucks and regular vehicles, to get to and from the bridge and the [Detroit-Windsor] tunnel," Boakes said.

"So things like that have to be analyzed at the same time, as where things are coming from and going to." 

The review will include public information sessions and consultations. The goal is to present it to city council early next year.