Ambassador Bridge blockade could quickly become problem for Canada's economy, experts say

The Ambassador Bridge that connects Windsor, Ont., with the United States is a crucial trade link between the two countries, so its blockade has the potential to affect businesses and consumers across the country, experts say.

The bridge sees about one-quarter of all the goods that go between the two countries every day, according to Statistics Canada, with roughly $300 million worth of goods passing over it under normal circumstances.

That's about as much as Canada ships to countries like South Korea, Brazil, Switzerland or Australia in a typical month, and it's been brought to a grinding halt in recent days, occupied by protesters demanding an end to restrictions implemented to slow the spread of COVID-19.

About $50 million worth of auto parts alone goes over the century-old bridge every day, and those in that Canadian industry say the current situation simply cannot last.

The system that enables vehicle production across North America is what's known as a "just in time" supply chain that means, for the most part, components aren't mass-produced and then stored somewhere for future use. They are manufactured and shipped to where they are going within days, saving time and money for all involved.

That system has been stretched to the breaking point in recent days, said Flavio Volpe, president of the Auto Parts Manufacturing Association.

WATCH | Protests are slowing the flow of goods to a crawl:

There's a contingency of about a day or two where factories on both sides can hold things together. "After that, it starts to become a real problem," he said.

"If I'm making trucks in a Michigan plant and I can't get seats from London, well, I won't make those trucks," he told CBC News in an interview. "And if I don't make those trucks, I'm not going to then take deliveries from all the other parts suppliers from all over the U.S. that supply to that Michigan plant."

Paradoxically, it is because the situation is so damaging to both countries' economies that he's confident the worst-case scenario — an extended, full blockage — won't come to pass.

"The fact that it's so acute also lends to the argument today that I think this is going to be resolved rather quickly."

Perrin Beatty, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said auto parts are only one part of the equation.

Everything from food to medical supplies moves along that bridge every day, which is why "the consequences both for Canadian families and for Canadian business are enormous," he told CBC News in an interview.

Supply chains are stretched as it is, and the situation in Windsor will do nothing to ameliorate that, he said.