The Monday morning drive will be a little more pleasant for Edmonton motorists, thanks to the opening of the Walterdale Bridge.
“We’re pleased to be able to share this beautiful bridge with the public,” deputy city manager Adam Laughlin said.
“This new river valley icon will be something for commuters to look forward to on Monday morning and for Edmontonians to use and admire for the next 100 years.”
READ MORE: New Walterdale Bridge will open in September after long delay
Two of three lanes opened to traffic on the new bridge Monday morning. The third lane will open in October, the city said.
Pedestrians won’t be able to use the new Walterdale bridge until the aidewalk is completed sometime in October. Until then, pedestrians can use the west sidewalk of the old bridge.
A shared-use path will open later this fall along with some surrounding trails, according to the city. Some trail connections can’t be finished until the old bridge is removed.
The city said the access road out of the Kinsmen Sports Centre will be realigned and the old bridge will be demolished once pedestrian and vehicle traffic moves completely to the new bridge, which will be completed in 2018.
READ MORE: Walterdale Bridge opening delayed again, to mid-2017
The $155 million Walterdale Bridge project began in the spring of 2013.
Construction was initially scheduled to be complete in fall of 2015. However, during the spring of 2015 the date was pushed back because the bridge’s 42 steel beams, which were made in South Korea, began arriving months later than expected.
The new bridge was then scheduled to open in late 2016, but it was pushed back again to mid-2017 because of weather-sensitive work, including asphalt paving, which couldn’t be done until after winter.
The city said the Walterdale has been the most complicated bridge it has ever constructed.
“Since the inception of this project, both council and administration had envisioned a ‘signature bridge,’ something that can take advantage of the setting in the river valley,” Laughlin said in June.
“The image, or the postcard, that can be created by this signature bridge is something that’s going to be able to stand the test of time in Edmonton, not only from a distance… but standing on it.”
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