The 1.5-mile bridge will be the longest
cable-stayed bridge in North America and will play a critical part in broader sustainability efforts as well as making it faster and easier to move goods between Canada and the US—and recycled materials helped make it possible.
The bridge’s two iconic towers each contain nearly 5,000 tons of steel reinforcing bars (rebar), which consists of nearly 100% recycled steel. Additionally, the bridge and road decks all use steel that is largely made
up of recycled steel.
The corbels that support the bridge deck near the tower legs are another example of the project utilizing recycled material in construction, with each corbel for the bridge including 121,254 pounds of stainless-steel rebar, which is made from more than
95% recycled
steel.
In addition, the bridge’s deck is built from a blend of recycled plastic and reclaimed wood fibers, which limits the bridge’s environmental impact while ensuring its safety and stability. Named for Detroit Red Wing hockey great Gordie Howe,
the bridge will create a direct, freeway-to-freeway connection between the two cities.
It will also add additional lane capacity and feature sophisticated intelligent transportation systems. A report from the University of Windsor’s Cross Border Institute found these three factors will save 850,000
hours per year for trucks.
This is going to enable the trucks to be able to cross much faster than they would've been able to before with less congestion and easier access. This one bridge is going to be responsible for one-third of the largest trading relationship in the world
... the impact is almost unthinkable.
David Cohen, United States ambassador to Canada to Detroit News
The climate strategy of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority (WDBA) is guided by three main goals and objectives: designing for durability and resiliency, conserving non-renewable resources by reducing energy and water demands, and protecting the natural
world by using green infrastructure stormwater management design. And the use of recycled materials in the bridge’s construction supports this effort.