March 2006
New kind of traffic flows across Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
A different kind of traffic is flowing over the US-Canada border as Ontario and Michigan now interconnect their high-speed optical research and education networks utilizing the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.
The new cross-border link, passing through the tunnel infrastructure, was marked at an official optical fibre splicing ceremony at Windsor City Hall on February 2, 2006. The direct fibre connection is believed to be a first across international borders for regional research and education networks.
"This link is of immense future value to Ontario and Michigan," said ORION President/CEO Phil Baker, who noted the connection will make it easier for researchers and institutions to collaborate and pursue new cross-border partnerships in science and learning.
"Merit's member institutions are very excited about this achievement," added John Camp, CIO of Wayne State University and chair of the Merit Board of Directors. "We see this as a critical step in developing a Regional Optical Network (RON) in the Great Lakes Region. A Great Lakes RON will eliminate geographic barriers for cross-institutional and cross-border collaborative research."
"This project is an excellent example of the knowledge-based, cross-border, regional approach that the Windsor/Detroit area is becoming known for worldwide," said Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis. "The speed-of-light exchange of information by optical fibre is crucial to the continued growth of our region's communications capacities, and for education, research and development in all sectors."
It's expected that new research partnerships will be facilitated by the new link, ranging from collaborations in automotive design to environmental research. There are plans to boost the capacity from the current one Gigabit per second link to multiple wavelengths creating one of the most advanced optical infrastructures of its kind in the world.
The City of Windsor and the Detroit and Canada Tunnel Corporation, which owns and operates the tunnel infrastructure were also acknowledged for their critical support, as were the University of Windsor and the Windsor Essex Development Network (WEDnet), part of the Centre for Smart Community Innovation, which played a key role in facilitating the link.
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