ONTARIO, Canada — The busiest U.S.-Canada border crossing has reopened after protests against COVID-19 restrictions closed it for almost a week, while Canadian officials are holding back from a crackdown on a larger protest in the capital, Ottawa.
Detroit International Bridge Co. said in a statement late Sunday that “the Ambassador Bridge is now fully open allowing the free flow of commerce between the Canada and US economies once again.”
The crossing normally carries 25% of all trade between the two countries, and the blockade on the Canadian side had disrupted business in both countries.
The protest in Ottawa, meanwhile, has paralyzed downtown, infuriated residents who are fed up with police inaction and turned up pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Ontario’s premier announced Monday that Canada’s most populous province will lift its COVID-19 proof of vaccination requirements in two weeks-- not because of the protests that have blocked the border and paralyzed Ottawa, but because “it is safe to do so.”
The busiest U.S.-Canada border crossing, meanwhile, was open Monday after protesters demonstrating against COVID-19 measures blocked it for nearly a week, but a larger protest in the capital, Ottawa, persisted as city residents seethed over authorities’ inability to reclaim the streets.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government will lift its COVID-19 proof of vaccination requirements on March 1.
Ford also says he would support Trudeau’s government if it proposes further measures to quell the protests.
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