Officials from the Peace Bridge have notified the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) that they will begin bridge deck resurfacing starting November 15.
During the resurfacing, one lane on the bridge will be shut down from November 15 through May 15, 2017, with the remaining two lanes open for traffic (one in each direction). To assist in traffic management during the construction period and to avoid truck queuing on the bridge entering the US, the Peace Bridge Authority will be metering the flow of commercial traffic into the United States. There will be no changes for trucks entering Canada.
Only trucks that have successfully submitted an ACE e-manifest and have paid the applicable U.S. border crossing fees will be permitted to cross the bridge. Trucks will be evaluated at the bottom of the bridge on the Canadian side by Peace Bridge officials through the use of Pre-Arrival Readiness Evaluation (PARE) provided by CBP. During the construction period, the Peace Bridge will require all trucks to submit ACE e-manifests, even if not currently required by CBP regulations. This will speed up the flow of truck traffic through CBP’s required clearance processes and minimize lane blockage by unprepared trucks.
Once Bridge officials determine trucks have a complete and successful ACE e-manifest and have paid the applicable border crossing fees, they will be directed to cross the bridge. The readiness evaluation will take place in the commercial vehicle staging lot at the base of the bridge on the Canadian side.
Trucks that have not submitted an ACE e-manifest will be denied access to the bridge and asked to return to a location off Peace Bridge property to address their issues or to use an alternate commercial crossing.
Trucks that have not paid the appropriate border crossing fees will be directed to the FAST office adjacent to the Peace Bridge staging facility where two self-serve kiosks have been installed to provide opportunity for the driver to pay the fee using the CBP’s DTOPS (Decal and Transponder Online Procurements System: https://dtops.cbp.dhs.gov/main/# This will be open from 8 am until 10 pm daily to assist drivers/trucks who have not already paid the border crossing fees.
All drivers/carriers are encouraged address both their PBA’s requirement to file an e-manifest and their border crossing fees before arriving at the Peace Bridge. Prepared drivers and trucks will be critical in allowing the Peace Bridge to function as efficiently as possible and to continue to facilitate commercial traffic during this construction period.
CBP and Peace Bridge officials with OTA’s assistance will be issuing additional education materials for the industry prior to implementation (scheduled for Nov 15). The Peace Bridge Authority will also be testing the new process in advance of going live on the 15th with the assistance of OTA carrier members.
To further the educational outreach, OTA will be hosting a webinar with CBP and Peace Bridge Officials next week. Registration information about the webinar will be distributed shortly once scheduling is finalized with CBP and Peace Bridge officials.
Additional Information
During the construction, the Peace Bridge Authority will continue to facilitate the movement of all loads currently allowed through the “Truck Loads/Special Loads Program” as found on their website at www.peacebridge.com. These loads will require special attention by Peace Bridge staff and will be metered across only during morning periods between the hours of 7am and 12 noon. This time restriction excludes radioactive loads that will continue to be mandated to cross between midnight and 6am.
To complete the entire redecking, one lane will be closed over each of the following winter periods (November thru April 16’-17’; 17’-18’; 18-19’).
OTA members with questions or interested in assisting as the Peace Bridge prepares for the upcoming construction can email [email protected]
