Some truck drivers told to stay off Gordie Howe Bridge

The Gordie Howe International Bridge was built to transform the flow of commercial traffic between Windsor and Detroit.But just days after it opened, some Stellantis truck drivers are being told to stay off of it or risk discipline.CTV's Sanjay Maru joins us now.And Sanjay, why would a driver be punished for using a brand new legal border crossing?

And Stephanie, what this boils down to is an issue surrounding money, not necessarily an issue with the Gordie Howe Bridge itself.This all starts with a post on a Facebook page used to share information with UAW Local 212's FCA transport members.The post telling drivers operating company semi trucks not to use the Gordie Howe International Bridge or risk discipline.Now, comments were disabled, citing the political nature of the discussion before the post was taken down altogether.However, CTV did get a screenshot of that post before that happened.UAW Local 212 represents drivers with FCA Transport, Stellantis' in -house trucking operation in the United States.

The dispute does not involve workers inside the Windsor assembly plant, and it is not stopping parts or vehicles from reaching Windsor.Instead, it comes down to which bridge company trucks use to cross the border.The union says FCA Transport currently pays the Ambassador Bridge a flat monthly fee of $160 ,000, regardless of the number of crossings.It claims the company previously paid more than $400 ,000 a month under a per crossing arrangement.Now, CTV News has not independently verified those figures, but the union argues that switching trucks to the Gordie Howe International Bridge would mean Stellantis would have to pay those tolls on top of its existing ambassador bridge agreement.A union notice says the current contract requires 60 days notice to end, and until that happens, the union says drivers could face death

for using the new crossing.The union also raising concerns about possible customs issues.But a U .S.Customs and Border Protection official tells CTV News those would not arise.They say commercial carriers submit electronic manifests before arriving at the border, and those documents identify the port of entry, the region, not the specific bridge.

Both the Ambassador and Gordie Howe International Bridges fall under the Port of Detroit.CBP says using a different bridge would typically be corrected at the primary inspection booth and would not automatically trigger penalties or a secondary inspection.From the agency's perspective, this appears to be an internal company matter, not a customs restriction.Meanwhile, Stellantis says it plans to use the Gordie Howe International Bridge, but it has not said whether the 60 -day notice period has begun.And the automaker would also not address the union's warning about driver discipline.So the Gordie Howe Bridge again is open, but for some drivers, an existing agreement appears to be keeping them on the Ambassador Bridge, at least for now.

Stephanie.OK, Sanjay Maru, thank you for this.