Repair work on the Hog’s Back Swing Bridge in Ottawa, a lengthy project that has had a major impact on local traffic, will take longer than originally planned and continue over this summer.
Much-needed rehabilitation work to the south-end bridge — built in 1976 — began last August and was initially scheduled to finish sometime in May 2020, but it now won’t wrap up until the end of August 2020, the National Capital Commission (NCC) announced Thursday.
“Although work is progressing well, challenges during the procurement and construction process will require the Hog’s Back Swing Bridge to be closed an additional three months, until August 28th, 2020,” the NCC wrote in a news release.
“The NCC regrets the impact that this extended closure will have on the public and is working with its partners, including Parks Canada and the City of Ottawa, to help mitigate the effects to traffic.”
The commission, which manages federal lands and assets in the National Capital Region, says the traffic detours already in place for the repair work will stay put over the summer. Pedestrian access, cycling access and canal navigation, however, won’t be affected.
The swing bridge carries commuters travelling on Hog’s Back Road over the Rideau Canal, just south of the Carleton University campus. The bridge’s swing features typically operate from mid-May to mid-October.
Ahead of the crossing’s closure last summer, the NCC said many of the “bridge components” had reached the end of their life cycle and the repairs would extend the bridge’s remaining service life by two or three decades.
In its release Thursday, the NCC didn’t specify what kind of challenges caused the project’s timeline to drag out longer than expected. A statement sent in response to a request from Global News cited a “scarcity of qualified contractors” for the “high specialized” work as one example of a hurdle experienced during the procurement process.
Once construction got underway, there were some “unforeseen site conditions,” according to the statement, sent via email by an NCC spokesperson. Demolition work revealed that some of the bridge components were in a “worse state than previously expected.”
Area councillor ‘disappointed’ with delay
Area councillor Riley Brockington told Global News that until Thursday morning, he’d been given “no indication that the project was behind” and he doesn’t know the reason for the delay.
“I’m very disappointed with the news,” he said.
Already, after six months of work, the River Ward city councillor said he’s witnessed significant congestion on Heron Road as a result of the detours and heard from two separate businesses in the area that their sales are down 40 per cent.
The traffic detours also affect emergency services’ routes when responding to urgent situations, Brockington added.
“It’s not just traffic,” he said, referring to the project’s impact.
City of Ottawa and NCC teams will meet next week to talk more about the project’s timeline. Brockington said he’s particularly concerned that the new Aug. 28 deadline remain “firm.”
“We need this project to be wrapped up,” he said.
Brockington said he’s also anxious to hear whether the delay will have any impact on Parks Canada’s efforts to rehabilitate the adjacent Hog’s Back dam and fixed bridge.
The final phase of that work is scheduled to begin this spring, also accompanied by road closures and traffic detours, according to Parks Canada’s website.
“There’s just so many variables going on in the immediate neighbourhood,” Brockington said.
“The goal is: Fix these bridges. Make it right, make them safe — completely safe — and we won’t have to address this for many, many years.”
Asked how much the months-long extension might cost the NCC, the statement from the commission said the project’s original budget of $8.3 million is “being revised” and it’s “too early to confirm the additional budgetary requirement.”
At the end of the day, the councillor said he is pleased the two bridges are getting repaired, noting they are in “critical condition.”
“In the short term, there is this pain we have to go through,” he said.
“I’m not happy at all it’s been delayed but that’s that’s reality.”
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