Detroit Regional Chamber > Advocacy > U.S. – Canadian Border Reopening Will Boost Michigan Businesses says Detroit Regional Chamber

U.S. – Canadian Border Reopening Will Boost Michigan Businesses says Detroit Regional Chamber

November 10, 2021

The reopening of the U.S.- Canadian border to vaccinated Canadians will be a boost to Michigan’s economy. Cross-border trade through the Detroit-Windsor border is vital for the economies of both U.S. and Canada with $500 million of goods crossing daily, and tied to thousands of family-sustaining jobs.

Chamber vice president of government relations, Brad Williams spoke to WXYZ Darren Cunningham at the Detroit – Windsor Tunnel.

“From a tourism perspective we will have more people at Ford Field, more people at Meadowbrook, and that is great for the tourism economy. But it also means we are going to have more talent coming across. Engineers and designers will be able to cross the border more freely to collaborate with their colleagues.”

The U.S. Travel Association estimates that each month the border is closed, it costs the U.S. economy $1.5 billion in potential travel exports, the statement said. Before the pandemic, Canadians spent more than $16 billion a year traveling in the U.S., the business groups said. In 2019, Canadians took more than 20 million trips over the border. In 2020, the number of trips plunged to 4.2 million.

The Chamber has been advocating for a safe reopening of the border throughout the pandemic. Detroit Regional Chamber President and Chief Executive Officer Sandy K. Baruah joined Rakesh Naidu, president and chief executive officer of the Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Mark High president of the Canada-United States Business Association, in a joint statement urging the United States government to reopen the border to Canadian residents safely.