City of Windsor, auto groups seek injunction to end bridge blockade choking off auto

Protestors blockading the busiest land border crossing between Canada and the United States may soon be removed by force, as growing ranks of Ontario Provincial Police arrive in Windsor and Michigan’s governor offers to provide heavy equipment to assist with the removal of vehicles.

Windsor, Ont. Mayor Drew Dilkens said the city, backed by auto industry groups, is seeking an injunction that will give police the authority to clear protestors that have halted truck traffic at the Ambassador Bridge since Monday, resulting slowdowns at auto assembly plants in both Ontario and Michigan.

The main applicants for the injunction are the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association and Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association, along with the City of Windsor and the Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce "as supportive interveners."

“The individuals on-site are trespassing on municipal property and if need be, will be removed to allow for the safe and efficient movement of goods across the border,” Dilkens said at a press conference Thursday.

The city expected to be before a judge Thursday and hopes “to have an answer soon thereafter,” Dilkens added.

However, The Windsor Star reported that a court hearing for an injunction was adjourned until noon Friday to allow "for any concerned defendants a chance to be notified."

“We hope not to have to move in. We hope we can get the protestors to see the light of day and recognize that the easiest way out of this is for them to voluntarily get in their cars are drive away," Dilkens said.

If the peaceful approach fails, Dilkens said the city will have the resources to remove the protestors and their vehicles, drawing on assistance from the Ontario, and perhaps Michigan, governments. The city also has requested help from the RCMP.

With auto parts shipments across the Ambassador Bridge at a standstill, numerous assembly plants across Ontario shortened shifts this week, sending workers home because of a lack of parts.

According to Unifor, which represents workers at Detroit Three plants in Canada, General Motors’ Oshawa Assembly Plant, as well as Ford Motor Co.’s Oakville Assembly Plant, reduced hours this week as a result of the blockade. Stellantis faced similar issues at its Windsor Assembly Plant, though its Brampton Assembly Plant continued to run as scheduled, albeit with reduced vehicle output.

Toyota, likewise, said Wednesday it did not expect to produce vehicles the remainder of the week as a result of the parts disruption.

Shane Wark, assistant to Unifor President Jerry Dias, said the blockade is just the latest issue in a tough couple years for Ontario’s auto workers.

“There’s been a whole, just relentless amount of layoff weeks that have occurred across the auto parts and the OEM assembly plants,” Wark told Automotive News Canada.

Wark said Unifor does not question the right to protest, but the blockade has “gone beyond that” and is harming workers and their families.

Parts suppliers have also been feeling the impacts.

Linamar Corp. CEO Linda Hasenfratz said the Guelph, Ont. supplier has been watching the border situation with concern.

“The last thing any business needs right now is to be shut down yet again,” she said in a statement, while also urging protestors to let the industry get back to work.

The industry has been waiting for days for the authorities to retake control of the situation.

“We just want somebody to take control, and right now there seems to be a fair amount of finger-pointing going back and forth between the different levels of government,” said David Adams, president of the Global Automakers of Canada.

Dennis Darby, CEO of Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME), which represents goods produced across all sectors of the economy, said a solution cannot come quickly enough.

“It should be yesterday. It’s just unfathomable that we're letting this persist for days. This is totally separate from political demonstrations in Ottawa or anywhere else. This is about Canadians getting in the way of their own economy.”

Meanwhile, there is mounting concern that the blockade will damage Canada’s reputation as a reliable trading partner as well as the competitiveness of its auto industry.

Competition for auto investment especially as the industry moves toward electrification is intense, Brian Kingston, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, said at the Windsor press conference. “When issues like blockades arise, it is a worry.”