Bridge opens
Bridge declared unsafe in November 2011 has been rebuilt and finally opened Friday
Pedestrian crossing completed
A new pedestrian bridge over the Otonabee River at the south end of Peterborough’s downtown opened Friday, replacing the walkway that was closed due to safety concerns in November 2011.
With the bridge reopened, a popular walking and cycling route between downtown and East City is re-established.
The city spent $3.38 million to build the bridge and repair damage to the adjacent railway bridge that was caused by the former walkway.
“We’ll have a grander celebration of the opening once the approaches to the bridge are cleaned up, because they’re still doing repairs to the main CPR bridge structure that the former walkway damaged over the years,” planning and development services director Malcolm Hunt said.
City council made the project a priority after the city closed the walkway when staff noticed the concrete slabs were pulling away from the bridge deck, creating a safety concern. It i mmediately shifted money from other projects in the city’s capital budget to deal with the unexpected problem and restore the walkway.
The walkway could be closed for a short period in a few weeks to apply concrete sealer to the deck, Hunt said.
It was originally planned to open by the end of May but the project was delayed by challenging weather conditions, including drastic swings in temperature that raised water levels.
The new walkway is connected to the railway bridge piers instead of directly to the bridge deck. To build the new structure, workers extended a temporary road into the river to get to the base of the piers.