If all goes according to plan, the city hopes to install the new Shaganappi Trail pedestrian bridge over the next two weekends. The $5.9 million pedestrian bridge has been sitting on the side of the road in the city’s northwest for two months because of a design mistake.
The city had planned to install the bridge in mid-January but had to cancel when engineers discovered the support beams were 11 centimetres too short and didn’t join up properly with the supports.
“We went to erect this bridge back in January and while the bridge was the right length, there were two cross beams that butted up against a concrete ramp. We had to cut them, out slide them back four inches and re-weld them and paint them in place,” said Michael Thompson, Director of Transportation Infrastructure for the city of Calgary.
WATCH: The process used to fix the flaw in the pedestrian bridge.
“When the parts come together, sometime there are pieces that don’t fit, so that’s what we experienced last time,” added Thompspon.
Taxpayers won’t be footing the bill for the fix but even so, some people in the area are calling the bridge the “Blue Blunder”.
So far the bridge has been delayed twice. Installation was originally scheduled for last summer but was held up by delays in steel fabrication.
Now that the design flaw has been fixed, the city plans to install the bridge starting Saturday night, as long as winds remain below 25 kilometres per hour.
The steel arch will be the first part of the bridge to be put into place. The bridge’s concrete deck will be added the following weekend.
That means this weekend and next, Shaganappi Trail between Crowchild Trail and Northland/Dalhousie Dr. will be closed during off peak hours.
Here are the times for the scheduled lane closures:
Friday March 13 : 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Saturday March 14: 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Sunday March 15: 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Friday March 20: 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Saturday March 21: 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Sunday March 22: 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
The pedestrian bridge will cross Shaganappi Trail between Crowchild Trail and Dalhouse Drive, connecting the communities of Dalhousie and Brentwood.
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