Kingston’s Third Crossing Bridge is now 80 per cent complete

Construction work on the Third Crossing Bridge is moving along as scheduled.

The bridge, one of the largest projects in the city’s history, is steadily inching towards completion.

“We’re about 80 per cent complete on the overall project right now,” says Mark Van Buren, deputy commissioner of major projects for the city.

“So 2022 is really our last major year of construction. The team is still looking ahead to getting the bridge open for public use by the end of this year.”

The project has a budget of $180 million.

The federal government, the provincial government and the City of Kingston have each contributed $60 million.

Construction of the bridge has created numerous local jobs, and 95 contracts associated with the building were awarded to local businesses.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

“The team has been tracking an awful lot of those statistics,” says Van Buren.

“How many people are moving and relocating to Kingston to work on this project, what sort of contracts are being let to local businesses, and really trying to track what kind of an impact this project has on the local economy.”

The bridge, which connects the east end of Kingston to the central part of the city, wasn’t only designed with vehicles in mind.

“A significant part of the bridge is the accommodation of a four-metre-wide multi-use trail that’s going to be located on the south side of the bridge,” says Van Buren.

“So it’s really a great opportunity to try and get more people making trips by walking and biking.”

The long-awaited bridge is expected to be named later this month, selected from a short list of Ojibwe or Mohawk names that was released last fall.

According to the city, the name will be affirmed by council on March 22nd, and will recognize and honour the region’s Indigenous culture and history.