Issued by the Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association (BTOA)
Today the Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association (BTOA) released border crossing numbers for the year 2023 between the Province of Ontario and the States of Michigan and New York.
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to be felt in 2023. Car traffic was down 17.62% compared to pre-pandemic 2019 equating to a decline of approximately 4.8 million vehicles.
Truck traffic was deemed essential throughout the pandemic and therefore not subject to border restrictions resulting in 2023 truck volumes being similar to pre-pandemic volumes.
The Canada and United States federal governments imposed COVID-19 border restrictions on all non-essential travel on March 21, 2020. During the subsequent three years these restrictions were modified from time to time including Canadian requirements of pre-entry COVID-19 testing and using the ArriveCan app. These requirements along with the vaccination requirements were dropped in October 2022. The United States did not require pre-entry testing or utilization of an entry app but did require vaccination throughout. The vaccination requirement was dropped May 12, 2023. After this date there were no longer any COVID-19 border restrictions being imposed by either country. In 2023, compared to 2022, overall car crossings increased by 37.65%. Truck crossings increased by 2.48%. Combined there were 28,943,379 car, truck and bus crossings, an increase of 27.65% or 6,269,781 more vehicles. However, for most of 2022, as described above, COVID-19 border restrictions were still in place.
The data for each individual crossing is as follows:
As 2022 was not a normal traffic year, a more apt comparison of 2023 traffic would be to the pre-pandemic year of 2019 as described below:
In 2023, compared to 2019, overall car crossings decreased by 17.62%. Truck crossings increased by 0.28%. Combined there were 28,943,379 car, truck and bus crossings, a decrease of 14.20% or 4,788,576 less vehicles.
*Some crossings do not segregate “Buses & Misc.” and are included in “Passenger Cars”.
Notwithstanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on border crossings, traffic has been declining since the year 2000.
Overall, traffic in 2023 comprised 28,943,379 vehicles, 44.73% lower than in 2000 when 52,367,401 vehicles traversed the border. This equates to a decline of 23,424,022 vehicles. For individual crossing data, see the attached document entitled “2000 – 2023 Comparative Traffic Volume Analysis of Bridge & Tunnel Operators Association (BTOA) Crossings.”
Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association The Bridge and Tunnel Operators Association (BTOA) is a binational membership organization representing the international bridge and tunnel crossings between the Province of Ontario and the States of Michigan and New York. Members of the BTOA include the: Federal Bridge Corporation Limited and Michigan Department of Transportation operating the Blue Water Bridge, Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority, Detroit Windsor Tunnel LLC and the Windsor Detroit Borderlink Limited operating the Detroit Windsor Tunnel, Niagara Falls Bridge Commission, Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority, Sault Ste. Marie Bridge Authority, Seaway International Bridge Corporation, Ambassador Bridge, and the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority.
For more information and BTOA contact information, go to www.bridgeandtunneloperators.org
2000 VS 2023 GRAPHS
