© Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and Bridging North America

Border crossing

The Gordie Howe International Bridge, connecting the United States and Canada across the Detroit River, is currently being built using mageba RESTON®SPHERICAL bearings

When it was decided to build a new cable-stayed bridge across the river that forms the border between Detroit (USA) and Windsor (Canada), it was proposed to name the structure after the local sporting legend, Gordie Howe – a Canadian professional ice hockey player who spent most of his long career with the Detroit Red Wings, and who is considered by many to have been one of the greatest ice hockey players of all time.

The bridge will have a total length of approximately 2.5 kilometres / 1.5 miles, and its main span of 853 meters (0.53 miles) length will be the longest of any cable-stayed bridge in North America.

mageba was selected to design and fabricate 124 spherical bearings for the main structure and the Canadian approach structure. Fifteen different types of RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing were designed to meet the various force, movement and rotation requirements throughout the structure. Particularly noteworthy is that each of the main span bearings was designed with multiple removable shims to enable the bridge deck to be gradually lowered during the construction stage as required by the construction method.

Bridge designer: AECOM
Contractor: Bridging North America
Owner: Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority

Visualization of the Gordie Howe Bridge – currently being constructed to connect Canada and the United States across the Detroit River

(© Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and Bridging North America)

Design representation of one RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing type with a short sliding plate

Design representation of one RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing type with a long sliding plate

RESTON®SPHERICAL bearings as fabricated – lower parts including multiple shim plates before placing of curved calottes and flat sliding plates on top

A RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing as fabricated, following placing of the calotte and the sliding plate on top

A RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing during installation on site, prior to concreting of the plinth underneath

(© Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and Bridging North America)

A RESTON®SPHERICAL bearing as fully installed to support the superstructure of the Gordie Howe International Bridge

(© Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and Bridging North America)