The city has studied two proposals to replace the Arlington Bridge that could cost tens of millions of dollars less than previously expected, a city councillor says.
A few months ago, city officials told councillors they were considering two key options to replace the decaying bridge, after the vital transportation link to the North End suddenly closed 10 months ago.
“They’re talking about replacing it, on the same trajectory as it sits today, with slight differences,” said Mynarski Coun. Ross Eadie.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS
Some city councillors recently heard preliminary options to repair the shuttered Arlington Bridge, though a long-awaited final report still hasn’t been released.
The councillor said a $171-million bridge option would involve closing Dufferin Avenue at Arlington Street, while a $180-million version would travel over Dufferin, leaving it open for vehicle traffic.
Winnipeggers will need to wait at least another month to read the final options to address the structure that was shut down in November 2023.
Eadie said he was told the options are much cheaper than previous estimates to replace the bridge because a past option accommodated three lanes of traffic, while these versions would only have two. Past designs also included more property expropriations, adjustments to rail lines below the bridge and separated spaces for bike and pedestrian paths, which also contributed to the higher cost, he said. Eadie said the new options would have one shared active transportation path.
In 2019, a preliminary design estimated a new bridge could cost $319 million.
Eadie stressed the bridge’s replacement is critical. He plans to buy ads that urge Winnipeggers to push all city council members to support funding for the project.
“The first step is to fund the removal of the old bridge because it’s very dangerous right now,” said Eadie.
In 2016, city engineers deemed the Arlington Bridge, which opened to traffic in 1912, to be near the end of its life.
Eadie said the bridge is in urgent need of replacement, describing it as a critical link used by several communities and a common route used to reach Health Sciences Centre, prior to its closure.
“It’s more than just my ward … the Arlington Bridge should be the No. 1 project for this city, in terms of major infrastructure. Yeah, the St. James Bridge needs work but it’s still open,” he said.
Coun. Janice Lukes cautioned against banking on either of the options becoming final proposals, calling both “preliminary” and noting both prices and options could change before a final report is released.
“We don’t have the final facts yet because the report’s not done. It may change. It’s just not finished yet,” said Lukes (Waverley West), the chairwoman of council’s public works committee.
“It’s an option that was presented to us, yes … Really, we’re looking at a wide range of designs and options and that brings a wide range of prices. They have not, to my knowledge, decided on anything yet. What Coun. Eadie is (talking about) is a concept but they’ve got multiple concepts,” she added.
Lukes expects a final council-ordered report on rehabilitation options for the bridge, which was expected in October, will now be released publicly in November.
She warned the actual replacement of the bridge, should council find a way to fund it, would take years.
“Even if we come out with (the decision) we’re going to replace it, we’ve still got to take the old bridge apart. So, it’s still going to be at least another two or three years … bare minimum,” she said.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS
A 2019 preliminary design of the Arlington Bridge estimated a new bridge could cost $319 million.
Lukes said she’s “optimistic” the bridge will be replaced but that would likely require funding from other levels of government.
The city announced the sudden closure of the bridge on Nov. 21, 2023, after a condition assessment found steel corrosion had accelerated, raising the risk involved with keeping it open.
Mayor Scott Gillingham said he wants the final options to cope with the bridge as soon as possible.
“The consultants and our staff do need to take the time to get the report finalized … but I am eagerly anticipating that report,” said Gillingham.
This summer, the city budgeted $1 million to replace multiple bearings on the bridge to prevent it from falling on the rail yard below it, work that did not help reopen or demolish it. A spokeswoman said that work was “completed as planned.”
As they wait to learn the bridge’s fate, some residents say its absence is creating frustrating traffic delays.
“It’s very important (to fix) … (On) McPhillips, Salter and Main, the traffic is just crazy now,” said Darrell Warren, president of the William Whyte Neighbourhood Association.
Warren said he’s frustrated that no decision on the bridge’s future has been made, years after the city acknowledged it was nearing the end of its useful life.
“They’ve known for years that bridge is going to need replacement and they kept putting it off and putting it off,” he said.
— with files from Gabrielle Piché
joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca
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Joyanne Pursaga
Reporter
Joyanne is city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. A reporter since 2004, she began covering politics exclusively in 2012, writing on city hall and the Manitoba Legislature for the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in early 2020. Read more about Joyanne.
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