For the better part of a decade, motorists on the New York side of the Peace Bridge in Buffalo have had to confront a vexing problem: One wrong turn, easily taken, and you’ll soon be in Canada.
But under President Trump’s immigration crackdown, the inconvenience of a wayward trip has taken on dire consequences. A number of people, including some with legal residency status, have been detained for weeks pending deportation procedures.
The latest episode occurred last month, when U.S. authorities arrested a University of Buffalo research scientist, Shovgi Huseynov, who tried to turn around before crossing the Peace Bridge and was detained for weeks, first in nearby Batavia, N.Y., and then in Michigan.
Mr. Huseynov, a native of Azerbaijan whose lawyers said he had authorization to work in the United States through 2029, was released in late January. But the publicity over his detention sparked outrage, calls for reform and, earlier this month, a small gesture from Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Ms. Hochul’s anger over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown has soared in recent months, leading her to call for a prohibition on partnerships between police departments in New York and the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
In Buffalo, she has directed the State Department of Transportation to place temporary electronic signs at the entrance to the bridge’s roundabout warning drivers that they are heading to another country.
“I am traumatized when I think about what is happening to families,” Ms. Hochul said at a news conference. “I mean, this insanity has to stop.”
For now, motorists will have to be content with the electronic signage, which alternately flashes “Right Ramp” and “To Canada Only.”
The navigational trap was accidentally created by New York about a decade ago, when the state helped rebuild a portion of a nearby park that resulted in the creation of the traffic roundabout.
Officials from the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority, which has oversight over the border crossing, warned that the new design could confuse drivers. The changes to the bridge’s entry route also eliminated a road that had, for decades, been used by people who had accidentally steered themselves toward Canada and needed to turn around.
“At the time New York State was designing this project, the Bridge Authority explicitly raised concerns about the Porter Avenue roundabout, noting that it was an irregular design that would create functional and safety problems,” Assemblyman Jon Rivera and State Senator April Baskin wrote in a letter to New York transportation officials late last month.
“Their recommendation was clear: The roundabout should not be constructed. That advice was ultimately ignored, as the project was not under the Bridge Authority’s jurisdiction.”
But with the recent shift in U.S. immigration enforcement, Mr. Rivera and Ms. Baskin wrote, “an unintended border crossing can now carry severe and life-altering consequences.”
The lawmakers cited reporting in The New York Times that chronicled the case of a Colombian immigrant named Victor who had been detained for weeks after the GPS on his cellphone erroneously directed him across the Peace Bridge into Canada. Victor was authorized to work in the United States while he sought political asylum.
Sean Ryan, Buffalo’s new mayor, said he would soon be meeting with leaders of the Bridge Authority. He said that while the temporary signs Ms. Hochul had installed were a good start, a more durable fix was needed.
“Everyone is thinking about a more permanent solution,” Mr. Ryan said. “We spent so much money doing that plaza redesign and it really worked at getting traffic off the streets. We need to have a better stopgap. I am trying to see what else we can do so the chances are decreased that you pick the wrong lane.”
Part of the reason for drivers’ errors seems to be their reliance on mapping apps, which have occasionally sent unaware motorists across the bridge. It was a phenomenon that The Times experienced last year, when a request for directions to a restaurant in Buffalo resulted in a trip across the international border. The Times’s journalists were told by a Canadian border agent that these inadvertent crossings happen “at least 20 times a day.”
Mr. Huseynov did not respond to a request for an interview, but in an emotional video posted to Facebook last month, the father of two discussed his relief at being home. He pulled both of his children into the video and spoke with pride about how in his absence, his son had competed in a swimming race and won.
“Thank you, my son. I kiss you,” he said in Azeri, noting that his return was possible because all his “documents were legal and in accordance with the law.”
“I have now returned to my normal life, and everything is fine,” he said.
Since there are so many different entities involved in operating the Peace Bridge and the border crossing, state transportation officials said that a permanent solution would take time. That is why the large temporary signs were so important.
“The state took immediate action to reduce these instances and is working closely with the city of Buffalo, Thruway Authority and Peace Bridge Authority to alert drivers ahead of the border,” Glenn Blain, assistant communications director for the Transportation Department, said in a written statement.
Mr. Ryan said there were simple changes that U.S. Customs and Border Protection could immediately make to significantly reduce the problem, including removing a set of orange barrels that block drivers from turning around outside a certain spot near the customs booths.
Ms. Baskin and Mr. Rivera agreed. They urged the Bridge Authority — which acts as a landlord for federal border agencies — to consider allowing motorists to exit through a gate at the edge of the travel plaza on the U.S. side.
But Thomas Boyle, the Bridge Authority’s chief executive, said that Customs and Border Protection had control over the gate. And he encouraged the lawmakers to consider solutions that fix the problem at its source: the confusing traffic circle on Porter Avenue where motorists trying to reach the highway frequently take the ramp toward Canada instead.
Once a car is on the ramp, it can’t turn back. The only solution is to keep moving forward, over the bridge toward Canada, and then back into the dragnet of federal immigration agents.
“We want to see a solution,” Mr. Boyle said. “And our main statement at this point is solutions can be made where the problem persists.”
Mr. Rivera, however, said that the board that Mr. Boyle reported to — composed of five Canadians picked by the national government and five New Yorkers selected by the governor — should be more proactive in finding a solution that worked for people using the bridge and not the U.S. government.
A spokesman for Customs and Border Protection did not answer specific questions about the continued problems at the Peace Bridge but said that “border security and our law enforcement mission remain our priority.”
“We need to make clearer to people that C.B.P. is the tenant and not the one calling the shots,” Mr. Rivera said. “We’re the landlord. We’re the owners.”
Benjamin Oreskes is a reporter covering New York State politics and government for The Times.
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