New project will be third span to link Île-Bizard

The new bridge to Île-Bizard that will be built in the next three to four years will be the third span to link Île-Bizard to the island of Montreal. The current span, the Jacques-Bizard Bridge was built in 1966. Before that, the first structure to span the Rivière-des-Prairies dated back to 1893, according to the Université du Québec à Montréal’s Chronologie de Montreal website.

Borough Mayor Normand Marinacci could not confirm how much the Jacques-Bizard Bridge cost to build, but in July 1965 The Gazette reported a $644,000 contract had been signed for the bridge’s metal top.

That bridge was highly anticipated in the 1960s. “It’s expected the completion of the new bridge will permit the passage on to Île-Bizard of the most heavily-laden concrete mixers, vehicles that have been all but banned from Île-Bizard due to the rickety condition of the existing bridge,” stated an article in The North Shore News in June 1964.

The bridge is the only land-based connection to the island. However, there is one other way off the island — a seasonal ferry that runs from April to November offering service between Île-Bizard and Laval-sur-le-lac, a three-minute trip that costs $4.50.

The ferry was the only link to the island available in 1957, when a steam shovel damaged the old bridge. The ferry was smaller at the time; it could only carry two cars, according to an article in The Gazette. And to add to the inconvenience: “Residents of the island complained that the ferry operates only from 6:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., leaving them cut off in case of emergency for six hours,” the article stated. “They also said fire trucks from Ste-Geneviève would be unable to cross to the island.”

Today, the ferry to Laval can hold six vehicles and 34 passengers. It does not operate in winter.