Monday April 7, 2003
Transportation Challenges
Remo Mancini, Executive Vice President, Canadian Transit Company,
Detroit International Bridge Company
The Detroit/Windsor border crossings handle more than one-third of all trade volume between the U.S. Canada the
largest part of the Mexican-Canadian trade.
The Ambassador Bridge, which links Canada to the United States across the Detroit River, is owned by an American corporation,
the Detroit International Bridge Company ("DIBC"). It owns land on both sides of the bridge.
Dr. Dan Stamper is President Chief Executive Officer of DIBC
Construction of a duty-free shop of certain fuel tank installations on the Canadian side of the land was undertaken by the
Canadian Transit Company ("CTC"), a Canadian corporation that is a wholly owned subsidiary of DIBC.
These installations were paid for by CTC who still owns them. Remo Mancini is the Chief Executive Officer of CTC
CTC leases the duty-free shop lands, including the duty-free shop the fuel tank installations, to Ambassador Duty Free
Management Services ("ADFMS") which is a Canadian corporation, a subsidiary of CTC, which itself, stated earlier, is a
subsidiary of DIBC.
Mr. Mancini offered the audience a well documented talk supported by a graphics presentation. His remarks were naturally pointed toward a solution using the existing border crossing facilities. His arguments were convincing although he noted that there were skeptics who felt that alternative solutions provided more promise. In concluding his talk, he called for members of the audience to support his approach.
Earlier, in my remarks, I said I was going to ask you for your support. This is what I would like you to do.
- Support the completion of the Bi-National Partnership Study.
- Insist that the $300 million dollars be used for its originally stated purpose. Specifically for improvements to the approaches of the existing border crossings in Windsor.
- Request that our federal government sign a formal treaty with the United States mandating that each country provide the required number of customs officers necessary for the safe efficient movement of traffic. that this be done by an agreed to formula.
- In order to improve safety security at the border crossings, we must require that people goods be inspected before they cross the border, not after. Therefore, the U.S. Canadian governments must devise an agreement to allow for the full implementation of reverse customs inspection. The U.S. congress has already passed legislation signed by the President to facilitate reverse customs inspection.
- finally, we should support Windsor City Council in their efforts to remove international truck traffic from city streets. Local community corridors like Russell Street, Wyandotte Street, College Avenue, Tecumseh Road, EC Row others must be off limits to international truck traffic, unless that particular truck movement begins or ends it trip in Windsor or Essex County. This action will support local business while at the same time keep unnecessary international truck traffic from using every part of Windsor a route to the border.
Last Revised: July 2, 2003
Ross Clark presented a common sense message to his audience which said that there is no doubt that our border situation requires an expanded Canadian physical and management access for trucks travelling to the USA, but the United States must first demonstrate the political will to permit the truck traffic to proceed through the border in a timely fashion. 
Norm is a professional engineer. On recent visits to Shandong Province in China he became aware of the problems facing this mainly subsistence farming district. He also realized that he his fellow engineers in Ontario were in a position to make a contribution to the lives of the people in the areas he visited. 
"Many who are inexperienced about China fail to understand that one of the keys to its history in this century has been the
restoration of national pride unity after generations of fractionalism foreign exploitation. Their pride is neither communist
nor non-communist in character but simply Chinese, it guarantees that China's leaders will not respond constructively to
ultimatums." Richard Nixon
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