A major bridge connecting the US and Canada has reopened after Canadian police arrested anti-vaccine mandate protesters and towed their trucks

Police detain a protestor as they clear demonstrators against COVID-19 vaccine mandates who blocked the entrance to the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, on February 13, 2022.

JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images

• The Ambassador Bridge connecting the US and Canada reopened on Sunday night.
• Canadian truckers and protesters clogged the bridge for days, protesting COVID-19 restrictions.
• The protests hampered supply chains for fruits, vegetables, and automobiles in Canada and the US.

A major bridge connecting the United States and Canada reopened on Sunday after Canadian police arrested dozens of protesters and towed several vehicles blocking the crossing.

The Ambassador Bridge, which connects Detroit, Michigan, with Windsor, Ontario, had been blocked for six days because of the protests. 

Windsor Police began arresting demonstrators on Friday when an Ontario Supreme Court judge ordered protesters to leave the bridge after hearing arguments that the protesters were hampering vehicle production, impeding trade, and blocking traffic.

The protest was among several that arose throughout Canada after the country mandated truckers be fully vaccinated when crossing the border with the US or be required to quarantine for two weeks. 

The blocking of the Ambassador Bridge led to vegetable and fruit shortages for store owners in Canada importing from the US.

The blockade also led to interruptions in the automobile industry, forcing several major automobile plants to curtail capacity or shut down entirely. 

Michelle Wasylyshen, a spokeswoman for the Retail Council of Canada, told NBC News that "roughly 25% of all food and consumer products, as well as packaging and ingredients, are shipped by trucks across the Ambassador Bridge.

Approximately $360 million in items are transported using the bridge each and every day, according to Reuters.

Windsor's Mayor Drew Dilkens celebrated the bridge's reopening in a statement on Sunday.

"Today, our national economic crisis at the Ambassador bridge came to an end," Dilkens said, later noting that "illegal acts, blockades and hate speech must not be tolerated and should be denounced."

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