Protesters walk onto highway near Peace Bridge in Fort Erie, Ont., decrying vaccine mandates

At first, it seemed police prevented protesters from accessing the Fort Erie border crossing Saturday morning, after they blocked vehicles on the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) from driving toward it. 

A convoy of protesters opposed to COVID-19 public health measures and vaccine mandates had plans to drive toward the Peace Bridge — Canada's third-busiest border crossing — in Fort Erie, Ont., and mirror ongoing demonstrations in Windsor and Ottawa.

But the stream of cars and pick-up trucks driving down the QEW avoided the closed-off lanes, diverting from their original destination and driving around town instead.

Hundreds drove their vehicles around Fort Erie for several hours Saturday, honking their horns and making noise. Many stayed near Lakeshore Road, Niagara Boulevard and the Mather Arch.

Others continued to the bridge on foot. Roughly 70 people, including children, walked onto the QEW as police stood by. Some adults tried to stop transport trucks and other vehicles from continuing into Canada.

"It's a movement of people across Canada who are tired of the mandates dictating and governing their lives," said Karen Primmer, a Fort Erie resident who was waiting for protesters to arrive.

"If it does turn into a complete blockage of traffic for our supply lines, I'd say I still support that ... in order for things to change, things need to get uncomfortable."

The actions were noisy and visible across several streets in the area, with vehicles flying Canadian flags parked on the sides of roads and in nearby parking lots, but not close to the disruption of border activities that has occurred at Windsor's Ambassador Bridge. 

At the Peace Bridge, police kept one lane open for incoming traffic as protesters stood on the highway. Vehicles travelling through the area drove close to the protesters, but no one was hit. The protesters sang the national anthem, played music, linked arms and chanted.

Members of the group declined interviews with CBC Hamilton when asked why they decided to stand on the highway.

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) spokesperson Kerry Schmidt deferred questions about potential fines to Niagara police.

Niagara police didn't immediately respond to requests for comment, but said in an online statement Saturday its priorities were were keeping people safe and maintaining peace. It also said "it is expected that all participants will follow the Criminal Code of Canada and the Highway Traffic Act."

Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop told CBC Hamilton protesters who walked onto the QEW need to respect other people's rights and be mindful of how dangerous that is.

Despite that, the mayor said he was "relieved" to see how things unfolded, given he was expecting 350 vehicles heading toward the border. The number of vehicles involved was difficult to estimate as many were scattered throughout the area.