The City of Ottawa says it will cost about $22.6 Million to transform the 140 year old Prince of Wales Bridge over the Ottawa River into a multi-use pathway and to preserve the rails under the deck.
An article in the Ontario Construction News stated that the bridge will be renamed by City Council as the Chief William Commanda Bridge after a late Algonquin elder.
A private consortium had sought under Canadian rail legislation to make the bridge the lynchpin of a private commuter rail system between eastern Ontario and Western Quebec communities. However, despite winning Canadian Transport Authority (CTA) regulatory rulings in its favour, the MOOSE Consortium's plan died last year when the federal cabinet issued an order in council indicating the city could effectively decommission the bridge as a transit route.
The city then decided to move forward with the pathway conversion for the bridge, hoping to acquire COVID-19 infrastructure relief funds to cover a significant part of the cost.
Ottawa Citizen reports that City staff told council that the federal government is providing about $8.6 million for the work, but that's just a portion of the total amount required to rehabilitate the old rail bridge over the Ottawa River and cover the tracks with a multi-use path designed to preserve the rails on the deck.
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While the city had been planning for an estimated $10.5 million project, council has now been told the total scope of construction will be about $22.6 million because of structural work required on the piers and abutments.
The city has been planning for the pier work through its regular budgeting process and has $5 million set aside for necessary repairs, but it needs to get council's approval to direct about $9 million more to the project.
Ottawa CTV News stated that the bridge connecting Ottawa and Gatineau via Lemieux Island is still expected to be used for rail again in the future but in the meantime will be used by cyclists and pedestrians and even cross-country skiers.
Currently the bridge is meant to be off-limits to the public, though that has not prevented people from using it, sometimes with deadly consequences. Last month, a 26 year old man from London, Ontario died after he jumped off the bridge and drowned and a 14 year old boy drowned in the river in July 2020 after jumping from the bridge.
The city is putting aside $94,000 - one per cent of the estimated construction cost of the multi-use pathway portion of the project - to be dedicated to indigenous art. The city says it will also incorporate in the tender process a provision for the successful contractor to engage with Algonquin communities to identify indigenous companies and individuals that could be offered jobs throughout the project.
The construction timeline has not been determined yet. The staff has said that the project is ready to be tendered and more information will be available once a contract is awarded.
