Some runners missed out on taking part in Sunday’s Detroit Free Press Marathon after a disruption involving the tunnel bus left them stranded. Roughly 30,000 runners took part in the 49th annual marathon, including about 3,000 Canadians. The event began at 7 a.m., with runners crossing the Ambassador Bridge into Windsor, then returning to Detroit through the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel. However, some runners on the Canadian side didn’t make it to the race. The LINQ Tunnel Bus says its bus departed for Detroit around 5:15 a.m. with over 70 passengers, but road closures and security blockades delayed its return back into Windsor for a second trip. The company says tunnel staff advised the driver around 5:53 a.m. that the tunnel was closed, earlier than the scheduled 6:15 a.m. closure. LINQ says it was unable to make another trip to pick up the remaining passengers and has apologized for the lack of communication - stating they will review its procedures for service disruptions and passenger updates. Meanwhile, Detroit Free Press Marathon Vice-President Aaron Velthoven stated that organizers are reviewing what happened and are gathering information from affected runners. Nicole was among those who missed the race despite waiting at Bruce Avenue and Riverside Drive for the bus. “I got there at about 5.30 and there was quite a few people waiting for the bus. I’d say at least between 30 and 40 people waiting. And nothing... no bus showed up, no info, no one sent over to let us know that no one was coming so people could arrange for rides to get over there.” She says it was frustrating and disheartening to not even be told what was happening. “You psych yourself up, you do all this preparation to get ready for it, and you get there, everybody’s excited, they’re ready to go, and you keep looking down the street to see if the bus is coming, and as time went by, we just realized that 6:15, the tunnel was closed, there was no way to get there, so I waited until 6:45. The race started at 7.” She says the LINQ website indicated that the shuttle may be late, but to wait for it. “If they would have sent maybe a courier or someone else just to let us know, people could have gotten their cars and boogied over there and got there on time. But as it was, there’s no way to get there.” Nicole says she was in the marathon last year and took the LINQ bus with no issues. Affected runners are encouraged to contact the race organizers at support@freepmarathon.zendesk.com. The Detroit Free Press Marathon is the only marathon in the world that crosses two international borders. This year’s international full and half-marathon races were sold-out.
