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Peace Bridge Crossing Summary

Overview

The Peace Bridge connects Buffalo, New York with Fort Erie, Ontario and crosses the Niagara River. The bridge links the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) in Canada and provides with I-190 and other major roadways in the U.S. The QEW extends to Toronto, Ontario and also links with Highway 401, one of the major East-West Canadian expressways. I-190 provides a link to I-90, the main artery of the New York State Thruway, connecting the area to the major population centers on the East Coast.

The Peace Bridge contains only a single, three-lane span. The center lane is reversible and can be used to ease congestion during peak travel conditions. The bridge was built in 1927 and is 5,800 feet long. The bridge is governed by a ten-member board consisting of five members from New York State and five members from Canada. All capital improvements and operating expenses are funded by tolls and rentals of Peace Bridge-owned property and buildings, not public funds. While a single organization, the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority manages two tightly linked groups of bridge operators and maintenance workers.

Crossing Times
empty cell Baseline Time [1] Average Crossing Time [2] 95th Percentile Time [3] Buffer Time [4] Buffer Index [5]
Outbound 9.0 21.7 38.0 16.2 74.7
Inbound 8.3 21.5 83.4 61.9 265.7

Notes:

  1. Baseline time (in minutes) to travel the study distance (between the starting point in the exporting country and the initial inspection point in the importing country) in free-flow traffic conditions.
  2. Average crossing time (in minutes) to travel the study distance.
  3. Time (in minutes) for 95 percent of trucks to travel the study distance.
  4. Time (in minutes) between the average time and the 95th percentile time for trucks to travel the study distance. This is the "extra time" that must be budgeted to cross the border relative to the average time.
  5. Buffer time necessary expressed as a percentage of average time. This is the extra percentage of average time that must be budgeted to cross the border.

Scatter plot showing the inbound and outbound travel time in minutes for Peace Bridge traffic volumes per hour per lane. Inbound traffic volume is steady, with delays averaging 10 to 30 minutes. Some delays are as much as 100 minutes. Delays for outbound traffic average 10 to 25 minutes. As outbound traffic volume increases, delays increase from 10 to 20 minutes.

Graph showing the average hourly inbound traffic volume and travel time in minutes per booth for Peace Bridge from 6AM to 6PM, showing travel time, volume per booth, and number of open booths. No delay travel time is 7.32 minutes. Volume per booth increases at 10AM. As open booths increase after 11AM, volume per booth decreases.

Graph showing the average hourly outbound traffic volume and travel time in minutes per booth for Peace Bridge from 10AM to 10PM, showing travel time, volume per booth, and number of open booths. No delay travel time is 9.73 minutes. Travel time decreases after 3PM. Open booths and volume per booth remain steady all day.

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