Chief William Commanda Bridge (Prince of Wales Bridge) | Closed for Winter

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by Ottawacurious

From Jeff Liepers latest newsletter:
I've been in touch with the City Manager through the course of the weekend about re-opening the William Commanda bridge. It is very frustrating to see that continued closure since any snow on it is long gone. Again, the City is looking for temperatures to be consistently above freezing before they'll re-open it, concerned about how slippery it is when frozen. Both Councillor Troster and I will persist in pressing for an expeditious re-opening, and to take advantage of the time we have to find a four-season solution to keeping it open.

THERE
HAS
BEEN
NO
PROBLEM
WITH
SLIPPERINESS
AT ANY
POINT
THIS
PAST
WINTER

God, this city.

[Wooderson]

Don't be shy about opening the Andy Haydon Park gates either while we're at it.

[Uhuniau]

Gee, I wish the person with the boltcutters reads this.

[VANRIDERFAN]

On CTV News last night, the reasoning out of city hall was that they didn't have the capability to keep the bridge open during the winter.

Well f@#@#, it is now Spring. Open the f###ing gates!!!!

[kwoldtimer]

Potential legal liabilities are a powerful incentive.

[VANRIDERFAN]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Potential legal liabilities are a powerful incentive.

Then every foot bridge should be shut down for any inclement weather that this city suffers from.

[rocketphish]

Chief William Commanda Bridge set to reopen as weather warms up
City was unable to look at possible winter activities on bridge due to low snowfall

CBC News
Posted: Mar 20, 2024 5:13 PM EDT | Last Updated: 23 minutes ago



After a four-month winter closure, the Chief William Commanda Bridge across the Ottawa River could reopen early next week.

The multi-use bridge connects pathways near Bayview station in Ottawa and the southern tip of Gatineau Park, and also fills a roughly four-kilometre gap in river crossings between the Portage and Champlain bridges.

It opened for the first time for pedestrians and cyclists last August, after Ottawa city council voted in 2021 to rehabilitate the former train crossing.

In a memo Wednesday, city staff said they're anticipating the reopening of the bridge early next week, depending on the weather.

The bridge closed for the winter in November, with staff saying it wasn't designed for winter use and the structure "does not allow for safe plowing, salting or grit operations."

According to the memo, staff were planning to assess over the winter whether winter activities like cross-country skiing would be possible on the bridge.

But due to low snowfall and higher than average temperatures, they couldn't to do that.

"Staff will continue to explore the potential for winter use of the bridge," the memo reads.

The city is asking residents to respect the barriers and, for safety reasons, to not use the bridge until it's officially reopened.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottaw...s-up-1.7150140

[vtecyo]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Chief William Commanda Bridge set to reopen as weather warms up
City was unable to look at possible winter activities on bridge due to low snowfall

CBC News
Posted: Mar 20, 2024 5:13 PM EDT | Last Updated: 23 minutes ago
...

...

So is the current barrier just made of these waist high temporary event fences?

If so - that's basically an invitation to climb right over - for anyone with half a desire to do so. If they *really* wanted to keep people off it - they'd use something much taller.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by VANRIDERFAN

On CTV News last night, the reasoning out of city hall was that they didn't have the capability to keep the bridge open during the winter.

I would love to know what this "capacity" would have entailed, given that snow didn't accumulate on the bridge in any meaningful way, leaving just the Lemieux Island and approaches to actually clear.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by vtecyo

So is the current barrier just made of these waist high temporary event fences?

Yes.

If so - that's basically an invitation to climb right over - for anyone with half a desire to do so. If they *really* wanted to keep people off it - they'd use something much taller.

That's been happening all winter. The city should have just given in after the initial outcry over the closure in November.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Potential legal liabilities are a powerful incentive.

Potential legal liabilities are a bullshit copout.

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by VANRIDERFAN

Then every foot bridge should be shut down for any inclement weather that this city suffers from.

Every non-footbridge, too. Something might happen!

[J.OT13]

Cross-post:

Originally Posted by J.OT13

A not so subtle stab at the City of Ottawa.


https://twitter.com/NCC_CCN/status/1...vFojG_CVw&s=33

[rocketphish]

Chief William Commanda Bridge reopens Monday morning

Blair Crawford, Ottawa Citizen
Published Mar 25, 2024 • 2 minute read

The Chief William Commanda Bridge opened for business Monday morning after its nearly four-month winter shutdown.

The popular bridge linking Ottawa and Gatineau across Lemieux Island has been closed since Nov. 21 because the city said winter maintenance — plowing and salting — could damage the structure.

In a memo to the mayor and members of council Monday morning, Alain Gonthier, general manager of public works, said the bridge is now open but would close again if the weather worsens.

“We will continue to monitor the weather and the bridge condition to ensure the bridge surface remains safe for users,” Gonthier’s memo said.

“In the event of a weather event or drop in temperature causing snow and/or ice accumulation on the bridge deck, staff may be required to temporarily close the bridge until conditions allow for safe pedestrian and cycling access.”

Cyclists and pedestrians chafed at the closure, with many simply jumping the barriers to make an illicit crossing on the nearly one-kilometre-long former railway bridge.

The refurbished bridge opened last August to acclaim, with nearly 30,000 people making the crossing in its first week of operation. Though it links the National Capital Commission multi-use pathways on the Ontario and Quebec sides of the Ottawa River, the bridge is a City of Ottawa project. The city spent $22.6 million to adapt the bridge for active transportation, with the help of an $8.6-million grant from the federal government.

Meanwhile, a nearly complete bridge spanning the Rideau River between Carleton University and Vincent Massey Park remains off-limits. The bridge is part of the construction of the Trillium Line LRT and its opening is tied to the opening of the Trillium Line. Workers must finish applying a protective coating to the structure and finish some final electrical work before the bridge is ready for use by cyclists and pedestrians. The bridge is expected to open sometime this summer, but no date has been announced.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local...monday-morning

[VANRIDERFAN]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Chief William Commanda Bridge reopens Monday morning

Blair Crawford, Ottawa Citizen
Published Mar 25, 2024 • 2 minute read

The Chief William Commanda Bridge opened for business Monday morning after its nearly four-month winter shutdown.

The popular bridge linking Ottawa and Gatineau across Lemieux Island has been closed since Nov. 21 because the city said winter maintenance — plowing and salting — could damage the structure.

In a memo to the mayor and members of council Monday morning, Alain Gonthier, general manager of public works, said the bridge is now open but would close again if the weather worsens.

“We will continue to monitor the weather and the bridge condition to ensure the bridge surface remains safe for users,” Gonthier’s memo said.

“In the event of a weather event or drop in temperature causing snow and/or ice accumulation on the bridge deck, staff may be required to temporarily close the bridge until conditions allow for safe pedestrian and cycling access.”

Cyclists and pedestrians chafed at the closure, with many simply jumping the barriers to make an illicit crossing on the nearly one-kilometre-long former railway bridge.

The refurbished bridge opened last August to acclaim, with nearly 30,000 people making the crossing in its first week of operation. Though it links the National Capital Commission multi-use pathways on the Ontario and Quebec sides of the Ottawa River, the bridge is a City of Ottawa project. The city spent $22.6 million to adapt the bridge for active transportation, with the help of an $8.6-million grant from the federal government.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local...monday-morning

So the decades of zero maintenance didn't cause the bridge to fall into the river but a snowplow and a bit of salt will damage it?

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by VANRIDERFAN

So the decades of zero maintenance didn't cause the bridge to fall into the river but a snowplow and a bit of salt will damage it?

Now you understand!

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by VANRIDERFAN

So the decades of zero maintenance didn't cause the bridge to fall into the river but a snowplow and a bit of salt will damage it?

The bridge doesn't need to be plowed or salted.