The southbound lane of the Mercier Bridge is in dire need of repair.
After doing extensive research on the best way to tackle the problem, the province announced it would replace the aging span.
The project is slated to cost around $300 million.
Just when the work will take place through remains unclear.
The province still has to go through a series of environmental consultations to see what effects construction would have on the St. Lawrence River that the bridge crosses.
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It also would have to fit the work into an already crowded construction schedule.
The Mercier Bridge is actually a complex structure both in how it is shaped and the jurisdictions it involves.
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The part of the bridge over the St. Lawrence River is provincial, the part over the St. Lawrence Seaway is federal, and the south end of the bridge is in the Kahnawake Mohawk Reserve.
The section of the bridge being replaced is part of the original Mercier Bridge that dates back to the 1930s.
The newer northbound lane was built in the 1960s and is in noticeably better shape. Residents near the bridge say construction can be a headache, but the work is necessary.
“I don’t think they have a choice. There’s always construction on the bridge,” Mario Choueiri, a resident who lives adjacent to the bridge, said. “We just don’t know when.”
The bridge carries an estimated 78,000 cars daily.
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