Bridge to Canada: Detroit's most anxiety-inducing sign

Eve Sampson and Sarah Raza, Detroit Free Press
·2 min read
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An Ambassador Bridge Patrol Unit vehicle blocks entrance for vehicles to be able to cross over to Windsor off of West Grand Boulevard in Detroit on Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. Potential explosives were discovered in a vehicle crossing the Ambassador Bridge Monday morning, leading officials to close the bridge while they investigate. Canadian border officials found the possible explosives during at the secondary inspection area and alerted Windsor police, according to officials. No threat was believed to be associated with the discovery and police believe it to be an isolated incident.

A Detroit journalist tweeted about her close call with an infamous United States-Canada border crossing. Thousands responded with horror stories of their own.

Speeding down Detroit's Interstate 75, drivers who aren't watching closely enough may find themselves barreling down exit 47B, to the Ambassador Bridge, which crosses over the Detroit River. In a viral tweet on Wednesday, Candice Fortman, the executive director of Outlier Media, shared a photo of the exit's anxiety-inducing sign: "Bridge to Canada," it reads, "no re-entry to USA."

With more than 9,800 retweets, hundreds of commenters responded with personal tales of mistakenly taking the exit.

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Responding to Fortman, @chriscowan626 noted, "I've done this before and ended up getting pulled into a room and our car searched."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers do encounter lost or "wrong-turn" motorists from time to time, the agency said.

There are no serious consequences for accidentally crossing the border, except that it may cost drivers some time. However, drivers can expect to have their car searched before being turned around.

"Once it is clear that outbound travel was not intended, and the vehicle is determined to be clear of contraband, motorists are escorted from the area and free to resume travel to their intended destination," Custom and Border Protection Public Affairs Chief Kristoffer Grogan wrote to the Free Press in a statement.

Entering Canada isn't as easy as taking the wrong exit, especially now that travelers must have the ArriveCAN mobile app with mandatory travel information.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Is the bridge to Canada one of Detroit's most anxiety-inducing signs?