The Detroit–Windsor Truck Ferry was a

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

service that transported

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...

s across the

Detroit River The Detroit River is an List of international river borders, international river in North America. The river, which forms part of the border between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ont ...

beginning on April 22, 1990. The ferry shut down on September 30, 2023. The service was split between two companies, Detroit–Windsor Truck Ferry, Incorporated of Detroit and CMT Canadian Maritime Transport, Limited of Windsor. It accepted only

s. The ferry was the primary crossing for

hazardous materials Dangerous goods are substances that are a risk to health, safety, property or the Natural environment, environment during transport. Certain dangerous goods that pose risks even when not being transported are known as hazardous materials (syll ...

(HAZMAT) trucks between Windsor and La Salle in Ontario, and

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

and the Downriver communities in Michigan, although other transport trucks could have used it as an alternative to the bridges. Hazardous materials have been banned from the

Ambassador Bridge The Ambassador Bridge is an international suspension bridge across the Detroit River that connects Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, United States, with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1929, the toll bridge is the busiest international border cros ...

and

Detroit–Windsor Tunnel The Detroit–Windsor region is an international transborder agglomeration named for the American city of Detroit, Michigan, the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario, and the Detroit River, which separates them. The Detroit–Windsor area acts as a ...

. The nearest alternative crossing that allows hazardous or

radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is conside ...

materials is the Bluewater Bridge, which connects Port Huron, Michigan, and

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...

, Ontario. Similar to all the international crossings in the Detroit–Windsor area, a toll was required, as well as clearance from

Canada Border Services Agency The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA; , ''ASFC'') is a federal law enforcement agency that is responsible for border guard, border control (i.e. protection and surveillance), immigration enforcement, and Customs, customs services in Canada. ...

and the

U.S. Customs and Border Protection United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilita ...

at both terminals of the ferry route.

Location

On the Windsor side of the river, the truck ferry entrance was located at 5550 Maplewood Drive, accessed from Ojibway Parkway via Sprucewood Avenue, near the Windsor Salt Mine. On the Detroit side of the river, the truck ferry entrance was at 1475 Springwells Court; that street intersects West Jefferson Avenue between South Schroeder Street and South Post Street. The dock was at the mouth of the River Rouge across from

Zug Island Zug Island is a heavily industrialized island within the city of River Rouge, Michigan, River Rouge at the southern city limits of Detroit, Michigan, Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located where the mouth of the River Rouge (Mich ...

. Customs offices were at the entrances, and clearance with Customs was required before embarking onto the truck ferry.

Ferry

The ferry was a flat open non-self propelled barge with a pilot house located on one end. The barge was towed by MV Stormont, a diesel harbor tow tug.

Operating time

The ferry made five trips from each side of the Detroit River from 7am (Detroit side) and 8am (Windsor side) to 3pm (last departure time). A one-way crossing took 20 minutes.

References

External links

Official Truck Ferry Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Detroit-Windsor Truck Ferry Ferries of Ontario Ferries of Michigan Transportation in Detroit Transport in Windsor, Ontario Canada–United States border crossings Detroit River