The province has finally put a long-standing design debate to bed by announcing the Bruhn Bridge in Sicamous will be replaced with a single, five-lane span, and not two bridges.
The new bridge and associated upgrades will cost the provincial and federal governments $224.5 million.
While the influx of construction cash and the new infrastructure is welcome news for the small community, it was not the design mayor of Sicamous favoured.
“We would have liked to have had the . . . two-bridge option, but the decision has been made by the Ministry of Transportation,” Mayor Terry Rysz said.
“That ship has sailed now. We are good to go. We are just glad to see the bridge being replaced.”
Few would argue that the aging bridge, which is part of the Trans-Canada Highway through Sicamous, should be replaced.
The two-lane span has been moving traffic across the Sicamous Narrows for more than 50 years.
“The current bridge is in dire straits and the sooner we can get on to building this new bridge, the better,” Rysz said.
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However, the design decision has been controversial. The province has been discussing for over a year whether to build one bridge or two, and the issue has also divided the community.
“I was definitely under the impression that the decision had already been made as to which option they were going to choose and they were just doing the consultation as window dressing, which is regrettable because it divided the community,” said Richard Chmilar, a Sicamous business owner.
The province denies the design decision was a foregone conclusion, saying it was based on extensive consultation.
The second bridge would have connected at the foot of Main Street.
Some were concerned it would bring too much traffic downtown, eliminate some public space and create an eyesore for nearby condo owners.
However, the community’s mayor had favoured the two-bridge option to help revitalize downtown, improve emergency response and to safely connect downtown to a new rail trail.
Now that there will be no second traffic bridge at the base of Main Street, the mayor is floating the idea of installing a suspension bridge for cyclists and pedestrians there.
“There is going to be a lot of people. I’ve heard upwards of 50,000 people a year, visiting Sicamous just to walk up and down the rail trail. We are going to need some sort of safe access for pedestrians and bicycles,” said Chmilar, who opposed the idea of a second traffic bridge but likes the suspension bridge idea.
For now, there is only one bridge in the cards but the province said the new five-lane bridge will include a separated pathway that is expected to be integrated into local trail networks.
Construction on the new bridge is expected to start in 2020.
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