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'Why can’t I drive there?': Local residents disappointed over U.S. Land border closure extension

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Windsor, Ont. -

The White House announced changes to some of its international travel restrictions on Monday.

Starting early November, air travellers will need to provide a negative COVID-19 test taken at least 72 hours before boarding and proof of their double vaccination status to be eligible to enter the United States.

However, the ban on non-essential travel across the Canada-U.S. land border was extended for another month.

“How come I can fly there and why can’t I drive there?” travel insurance broker Mark Firestone asks.

“It was really heartbreaking to find out that even though I’m fully vaccinated I’m not going to be able to cross the border for the season opener,” says Heather Petrie, Detroit Red-Wings super fan.

Petrie, who also goes by the alter-ego “Wing-nut” hasn’t missed a single Red Wings home game since 2014, until the border shut down in March 2020. The latest U.S border extension means Wings fans like Petrie won’t be able to attend the home opener on Oct. 14.

“I would love nothing more than to go to a game and see all my friends be part of the action,” says Petrie. “I love hockey, I love being there.”

With Detroit’s Motor Bella debuting Tuesday, the list of missed auto events are growing for local car enthusiasts.

“We’ve missed things like Autorama the last two years, which is a giant event and the Woodward Dream Cruise is a big one,” says Jonathan Lo Medico, car enthusiast.

A growing number of American politicians are becoming impatient as well. On Friday, a fresh batch of U.S lawmakers, including Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow wrote a letter to president Joe Biden, urging him to lift the ban by October.

“We believe that fully vaccinated Canadians should be allowed to safely travel into the United States via land ports of entry,” reads the letter.

“They (The U.S) don’t want to be the ones to screen the requirements that are part of getting across the border, let the airlines do it. That’s holding this up at the moment,” says Firestone.

With no clear end date for the land border closure, local residents say they don't want to get their hopes up that it will open when the current extension expires on Oct. 21.

“A little depressing looking across (the Detroit River) and knowing it’s so close and yet incredibly far,” says Windsorite Maciejka Gorzelnik.

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