BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION: Plans to improve American end of Peace Bridge move forward

The Peace Bridge now has some peace. That has not been the case lately with the state of New York and Canada squabbling over upgrades to the structure, which connects Buffalo to Fort Erie. U.S. officials, including New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, were receiving resistance from their neighbors to the north over needed repairs on the American end. The two sides worked out a resolution on June 26.

“A bridge only works when it works on both ends, and that’s basically the metaphor for today,” Cuomo said. “The Peace Bridge works best when it works for Canada and when it works for Buffalo.”

The agreement solidifies projects already in development, and expedites the schedule. It also calls for a traffic-management study on the bridge.

The duel started when the Cuomo administration wanted to spend more than the appraised value for a strip of land near the U.S. side of the Peace Bridge. When Canadian authorities questioned the move, Cuomo wanted the general manager of the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority, which overseas the bridge, to be removed. Tempers flared, and Canadians on the authority refused to consider Cuomo’s plans to enhance the American side of the bridge. Ambassadors on both sides were called in to help settle the dispute.