Latest / DEEP INSIGHT / Meet the first trucker to cross the Gordie Howe Bridge

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Meet the first trucker to cross the Gordie Howe Bridge · DEEP INSIGHT

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The Gordi Howe International Bridge has finally opened across border traffic.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: The grandson of the hockey legend, was one of the
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: first to make the trip between Windsor and Detroit.
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  Speaker 2: Joy and amazement and wonder at the architecture of the bridge.
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  Speaker 1: Just what a.
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  Speaker 2: Historic and just incredible structure it is.
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  Speaker 1: Construction began in twenty eighteen. In recent months, the bridge
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  Speaker 1: had become a target of Donald Trump, who declared that
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  Speaker 1: he had changed the original revenue agreement to now give
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: the US fifty percent of the profits. The Gordy how
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  Speaker 1: is the second bridge to connect the two cities. It's
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  Speaker 1: expected to ease the flow of goods and people between
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  Speaker 1: the two countries. Our next guest drove the first truck
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  Speaker 1: across the bridge. Today. Jim Pereira joins US now. He's
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  Speaker 1: the asset and fleet safety manager at the Ontario based
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  Speaker 1: trucking company on Freight Logistics. Jim, congratulations, the first trucker
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  Speaker 1: to make it across the bridge. What was that like?
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  Speaker 2: Thank you?
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  Speaker 1: It was.
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  Speaker 2: It was an incredible experience a little overwhelming at times,
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  Speaker 2: but it was a great honor to be part of it.
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  Speaker 2: It was it was awesome.
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  Speaker 1: Experience, overwhelming in what way?
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  Speaker 2: Uh, just knowing the uh, everything that's been going on
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  Speaker 2: with the bridge and all the talk around us surrounding
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  Speaker 2: it and being responsible for being at first commercial which
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  Speaker 2: was great, was a great thing to do.
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, how did this opportunity come about? How did they
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  Speaker 1: choose you? Uh?
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  Speaker 2: Well, just lucky, I guess there are some talks about
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  Speaker 2: it on Friday and over the weekend they finalized it
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  Speaker 2: and luckily I was chosen to do it. We've our
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  Speaker 2: company Offer Logistics has been part of assisting the Mordy
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  Speaker 2: how Bridge with some of their testing, and we were
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  Speaker 2: the first companies joined up for the breakaway account. So
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  Speaker 2: I think all that led up to uh, since I
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  Speaker 2: as a driver to bring the first shrug cross.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, to keep in mind a lot of people who
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: are watching from across the country are nowhere near as
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  Speaker 1: familiar with the connection between Windsor and Detroit as you are.
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  Speaker 1: So you have the Ambassador Bridge that's been the route
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  Speaker 1: for large commercial trucks going back and forth. What changes now.
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  Speaker 2: Just the process of trade. It's a large bridge, six
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  Speaker 2: lanes capacity, the timing it takes across the bridge, it's
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  Speaker 2: going to help a commerce quite a bit. So with
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  Speaker 2: all the delays with the current bridge we have and
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  Speaker 2: the ten or twelve traffic lights, you have to go
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  Speaker 2: through the congestion, the uncertainty of whether or not you're
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: going to be backed up in traffic, and if your
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: low's going to be on time or not. So all
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  Speaker 2: those things play a factor, especially on both sides of
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  Speaker 2: the bridge for Detroit and Windsor Michigan, Ontario. So now
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  Speaker 2: with this new bridge we'd have got to set up.
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  Speaker 2: It's an amazing bridge. It's just beautiful to look at
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  Speaker 2: and is very functionbal. Just traveling onto the bridge, as
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  Speaker 2: the director oute from the four to one, you jumped
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  Speaker 2: right on the bridge and no interception whatsoever, right to
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  Speaker 2: your toll boosts and then through your toll boats to
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  Speaker 2: go to the customs agents and straight across six lanes,
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  Speaker 2: three lanes both ways. With all the extra docs they
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  Speaker 2: have for inspections and the extra boosts they have for customs,
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  Speaker 2: it's just going to be a lot quicker.
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  Speaker 1: I don't have to tell you. Relations between the US
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  Speaker 1: and Canada are tense these days when it comes to trade.
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  Speaker 1: Let's put that aside for a moment. What will this
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  Speaker 1: bridge mean for the flow of goods back and forth.
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  Speaker 2: It's going to exponentially increase the flow of goods back
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  Speaker 2: and forth. It's going to give a lot more confidence,
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  Speaker 2: and it's letting everybody know that we're over for business
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  Speaker 2: on both sides. You mentioned the political shift and the tensions.
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  Speaker 2: I will say this, so when I did cross the border,
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  Speaker 2: shout out to the CBSA and the CBP officers. When
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  Speaker 2: I did cross and did my official paper, they were
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  Speaker 2: open arms on the other side, high fives, a lot
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  Speaker 2: of shaking hands, and he all wanted to take pictures
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  Speaker 2: and all of that went away. Today Today was nothing.
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  Speaker 2: It was nothing to do with politics, said nothing to
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  Speaker 2: doing any of that. It was strictly the way it
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  Speaker 2: should be. Cannon into us, coming together the way we
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  Speaker 2: always have, and this bridge is just going to be
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  Speaker 2: another connecting point for that.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, really nicely put let's finish with this. As you're talking,
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  Speaker 1: we are not only seeing you, but we're also seeing
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  Speaker 1: pictures of the bridge. It certainly looks beautiful in video.
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  Speaker 1: And though you've touched on it before. When you finished
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  Speaker 1: by telling me, as you look at that bridge, whether
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  Speaker 1: it was as you drove across or you're on the
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  Speaker 1: shore looking at it. What do you think?
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  Speaker 2: It's just beautiful. It's onspiring. If you take a look
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  Speaker 2: at it, you just see something different the whole time
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  Speaker 2: every time you look at it. But the structure is
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  Speaker 2: amazing when you're on that bridge. I highly recommend taking
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  Speaker 2: a trip across it. It's just a beautiful structure to
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  Speaker 2: look dot. And with him, they did a great job.
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: Jim Pereira the first truck or to across the Gordy
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  Speaker 1: Haw Bridge and he's the Asset and Fleet safety manager
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  Speaker 1: at Onfreight Logistics. Thank you very much, Thank you.
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: Ben