important change. This was the changing of the board of governors. It was changed to five Americans, instead of six, and five Canadians, instead of three. Now there was even representation from both countries, the American majority was eliminated. Only two months later, in April of 1996, the PBA announced plans to build a new bridge. Since that time, there have been some structural plans drawn, but there have been no strong indications that a bridge will be built soon. The building of the new bridge will be completely self-funded. There will be no money used from taxes in the United States or Canada. All of the money will come from tollbooth collections, and from money the PBA makes from leasing land. The leased land is land that is owned by the PBA, and is located in the surrounding area of the Peace Bridge. The PBA has never relied on funding support from the governments of the United States or Canada. They will not receive any for the building of the new bridge. The building of a new bridge is necessary.The old bridge is structurally sound, it could last for another 75 years, but it is just not large enough to accommodate all the traffic. Once again, it is necessary to remember that the Peace Bridge is an important link between the United States and Canada. The PBA states, “There was ten million dollars traveling over the bridge weekly in 1990, presently in 2001 there is 700 million dollars traveling over the bridge weekly.” In addition, 6,000 trucks carrying commercial goods travel over the bridge daily. By the year 2003, the Peace Bridge will reach ultimate capacity. If traffic continues to grow, the bridge will become outdated by 2004. Therefore, a new bridge is needed.The new bridge will either be a twin span, or a signature span. A twin span is a bridge in which two bridges essentially function as one. In the case of the Peace Bridge, the idea is that an identical bridge will be built next to the...
