Construction for the replacement of the Athabasca Bridge is slated to begin next spring, according to Alberta Transportation.
Design work for the new bridge is about 50 per cent complete, and the project is expected to go to tender at the end of 2018, according to Alberta Transportation communications advisor Wayne Wood.
“The new bridge will be wider and will include a sidewalk along the south side of the new structure,” he said in an e-mail response.
Funding for the new bridge was unveiled when it was included in the province’s 2017 budget under funded capital projects. The province will cover 100 per cent of the bridge replacement costs, Wood said, and the project cost will be determined closer to tendering.
Athabasca-Sturgeon-Redwater MLA Colin Piquette said the project is on track with the province’s original anticipated timeline.
“Infrastructure projects like a bridge, there’s a lot of work involved. There’s a lot of engineering, site preparation, there’s getting the land, consultations with the community as well as with other stakeholders,” he said. “All of these take a significant amount of time.
“Considering how long you have to use a bridge, you really want to get it right. I think that the timelines are actually pretty in line with what you would normally expect,” Piquette added.
The MLA said the aging infrastructure has really put limits on traffic between Athabasca and north of the bridge, and a new bridge will “open up the north side of the river.”
“I think it will provide an economic benefit to the area, plus it will just be that much safer,” he said, adding the sidewalk will prevent pedestrians walking on the road. “Over the years, I’m sure that this is actually probably going to save lives.”
Athabasca County Reeve Doris Splane also spoke in an interview about a sidewalk increasing safety.
Splane said she has crossed the Athabasca Bridge on foot, and having a sidewalk included in the new bridge “is just going to be remarkable.”
“We do have a number of pedestrians that use it, believe it or not,” Splane said.
Having that sidewalk will put responsibility on the Town of Athabasca to install a walkway to the bridge from town, Mayor Colleen Powell said in an interview.
“That’s not in the planning stage yet, so that’s something probably we’ll be doing next year,” Powell said.
Powell added she is really pleased the replacement is going ahead, that “it is really time.” She said the bridge has been on the province’s three-year plan in the past, but “then it didn’t happen.”
“It was jam yesterday, jam tomorrow but never jam today,” she said. “I’m really pleased this is happening. It is really time.”
Splane said replacing the Athabasca Bridge has been a long process, and when she first came on council 16 years ago it was in the works.
“Here we are 16 years later, and we’ve still got a process to go through,” she said. “This government has shown a lot of interest in this, and have been working diligently to make it happen.”
– With files from Joseph Quigley
