A Canadian mayor said on Thursday police were prepared to physically remove anti-coronavirus mandate protesters who have blocked a vital US-Canada trade route and forced US automakers to reduce operations, reported Reuters. The protest has also stranded cattle, pig and feed shippers, leaving the industry concerned about welfare issues due to long delays.

The closure of the Ambassador Bridge, one of the busiest border crossings in North America and a supply route for Detroit's carmakers, has US and Canadian officials scrambling to find alternate trade routes to limit any economic damage.

Canadian truckers started the protests as a "Freedom Convoy" occupying the capital, Ottawa, opposing a vaccinate-or-quarantine mandate for cross-border drivers mirrored by the US government. They began blocking the Ambassador Bridge on Monday and have since shut two smaller border crossings.