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Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by abduhl on Monday January 15, 2024 @09:53AM (#39001615)
Note that the new bridge is a Public-Private Partnership (P3) job. It's basically owned by the private companies that are building the bridge for a number of years and the toll revenue goes to them. After the set amount of years, it is transferred back to the government.
Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by theluketaylor on Monday January 15, 2024 @09:58AM (#39001676)
The delivery and operation is P3, but the ownership remains firmly public. It will belong to the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority which is a Canadian Crown corporation controlled by Parliament. The consortium will get funding from the tolls, but that is specifically for running the operations and maintenance.
Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by abduhl on Monday January 15, 2024 @10:59AM (#39002284)
A bridge that is operated and maintained by a private party for 30+ years and whose tolls also go to that private party is, for all intents and purposes, owned by that private party for those 3+ decades. WDBA's ownership and oversight is a legal fiction - they have no way to displace the private company without compensating them absent gross mismanagement by the private company, and even that would be stalled in court.
Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by theluketaylor on Monday January 15, 2024 @11:39AM (#39002752)
30 years on a design lifespan of 100+ years. If it were a 99 year lease on like the disaster that is the 407 I'd agree with you, but in this case the contract is well short of lifespan.
Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by abduhl on Monday January 15, 2024 @11:44AM (#39002819)
A rich and famous man at a fancy dinner party says to a young woman seated next to him, “Would you sleep with me for a million dollars?”

“You know," she giggles, "I think I would.”

“Would you sleep with me for 50 dollars?"

"Really, what kind of a woman do think I am?"

“We’ve already established that. Now we’re just haggling about the price.”

Re:25% of US/Canada trade depends on a single privately owne... by kranke155 on Monday January 15, 2024 @10:00AM (#39001694)
In Portugal we have those, except the government pays for construction and the private companies keep the tolls forever. Fun