Yearbook
2016 was a big year for the Walterdale Bridge Replacement Project, as the bridge finally came together across the North Saskatchewan River through two massive arch lifts in January and April, followed by deck steel and concrete work. Learn more about the milestones reached in the 2016 Yearbook.
Construction Update - December
Concrete deck pours are complete. Crews spent the fall completing deck form work, installing reinforcing steel, and pouring approximately 2,000 square metres of concrete.
The final deck waterproofing and paving were not completed due to winter weather. This work will be completed in the spring.
Work on the shared-use path continues in the west end.
Construction Update - September
Several key milestones have been reached on the Walterdale Bridge construction over the last couple of months. The bridge deck structure was completed and the 32 support hangers were put in place by mid-September. Off-site assembly of the Shared Use Path has also started. When it’s ready to be hung, the path will be shipped in segments to the bridge site.
While significant progress has been achieved to date, the remaining work must be completed in a specific sequence which will depend heavily on favourable weather conditions for the remainder of our short construction season. The completion of the suspension-based construction and concrete pours has pushed the timing for paving into colder weather where it may not be possible. The City expects that remaining work on the Walterdale Bridge will not be completed in time to open the bridge to traffic in 2016.
The old Walterdale Bridge will remain in service until the new bridge opens to traffic next year, so traffic will not be impacted by this schedule change.
This delay is very disappointing, but the City’s contract management processes have ensured that the City and taxpayers are protected in terms of cost implications. All costs for the delay are borne by the contractor.
Construction Update - July
We’re making great progress on the construction of the bridge deck. Of the 21 steel sections that will make up the deck, 13 have been built to date. Currently the deck is resting on temporary supports, but very soon it will be attached to the hangers which will provide the permanent support.
As the bridge deck construction continues, you’ll see the assembly of two large 100 metre tall cranes which will stretch out across the river for the completion of the centre portion of the deck.
Of the 32 bridge cables, or hangers, that will support the bridge deck, five have been put up so far. There will also be 14 hangers for the shared-use path (SUP).
All of the steel for the path is in Edmonton being assembled at an off-site location. The SUP is up to nine metres wide at the ends and 4.2 metres wide in the centre, and will be trucked to the bridge site in large sections after the bridge deck is completed.
Project Update - April
The second and final arch lift on the new Walterdale Bridge took place on April 12, 2016 with great success.
The 2,000 tonne signature bridge arch was raised about 20 metres to its ultimate height of 54 metres above the river (see video).
Now work has started making the connections between the segments. After that we'll be building the bridge deck!
The latest update on the Walterdale Bridge Replacement project including pictures of the January 19 arch lift and the upcoming construction timeline.
Project Update - January
The first of 2 major arch lifts took place on Tuesday, January 19.
The 950 tonne central arch, which was floated into place last November, was lifted about 15 metres to connect with the 2 arch sections already resting on the berms. The lift process took about 6 hours and a second major lift is scheduled for March (see video).
