Trump tariff threats partly to blame for dip in Windsor-Detroit tunnel traffic, says CEO

The Windsor-Detroit Tunnel Corporation has seen a nearly nine per cent decrease in daily traffic through the tunnel over the last four weeks as compared to the same time last year according to its CEO, Tal Czudner.

"[It's] actually less of a drop than the other border crossings," Czudner told CBC Windsor. 

"We talk quite often, and other border crossings are down around 14, 15, 16 per cent."

For the Windsor area, Czudner says the drop equates to about 1,000 fewer people each day.

Czudner says he believes U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to levy hefty tariffs and his frequent comments about Canada becoming the 51st state are among the main reasons for the decline.

Trump said Monday that he will go forward with a 25 per cent tariff on most imports from Canada next week, saying the country has ripped off the U.S. for too long and it's time to put a stop to it.

"This is an abuse that took place for many, many years," Trump told reporters at the White House. "The tariffs will go forward, yes, and we're going to make up a lot of territory,"

Tariff threats have 'thrown quite a tizzy into our country'

According to Czudner, the tariff threats have "thrown quite a tizzy into our country, so I think we're seeing a stay Canadian and buy Canadian — kind of a Canada pride mentality all across our country, and I think you're seeing a lot of the discretionary trips staying home."

WATCH | Traffic at Windsor's cross-border tunnel has dropped amid tariff threats:

Traffic at Windsor's cross-border tunnel has dropped amid tariff threats and '51st State' jokes from U.S. President Donald Trump

2 days ago

Duration 1:14

U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to levy hefty tariffs and keeps making comments about Canada becoming the 51st state. Traffic at the Windsor-Detroit tunnel has declined, the tunnel's CEO says. The CBC's Marcia Dubsky reports.

Czudner said the tunnel passengers are often people in health care, information technology and automotive, who head over to the U.S. in the mornings between 6 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. and then return to Canada between 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. He said those numbers have remained relatively consistent.

"But some of those afternoon and evening commuters emanating from Windsor, heading to Detroit, those numbers are down," Czudner said.

Businesses need to tighten their belt: Czudner 

The CEO said virtually every business in Canada will need to look at their numbers and re-evaluate and do some new projections. 

"This is a very difficult time. Even the threat of tariffs is causing a high degree of uncertainty. So again, like any business person, I need to try and think a couple steps ahead and maybe delay a capital purchase, maybe be a little bit tighter on the operating budget and tighten your belt," Czudner said.

"Like just about 49 million other Canadians, [I] have some anxiety and some trepidation as to what the next few months or potentially four years looks like for us."

Meanwhile, for the month of January, the number of people using the Ambassador Bridge saw a decrease, compared to the same period last year, while traffic at the Blue Water Bridge and Detroit-Windsor tunnel registered increases.

Data provided by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) shows there were 448,356 crossings at the Ambassador Bridge in January, compared to 479,972 last year — a decline of 31,616.

At the Blue Water Bridge there were 295,152 crossings in January and 254,273 the previous year — an increase of 40,879 or 16.08 per cent.

The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel saw a 4.32 per cent increase in traffic, or 307,403 in January and 294,684 last January.

The figures for all three represent buses, cars and trucks using the crossings daily.