Five-kilometre section of Queensway reopens for Monday morning commute
Traffic is moving through a five-kilometre section of the Queensway in Ottawa's west end this morning, after construction crews replaced the aging Booth Street Bridge.
Highway 417 reopened to traffic between Metcalfe and Carling/Kirkwood Avenues at approximately 12 a.m. Monday, six hours ahead of schedule after crews worked through the weekend to replace the bridge in Ottawa's west end.
"Good News! 417 now fully open between Carling/Kirkwood and Metcalfe," Twitter account Ottawa_Traffic declared at 12:15 a.m.
The weekend closure forced thousands of vehicles off the highway onto city streets, causing traffic delays on Carling Avenue, Catherine Street, Bronson Avenue and other roads through Centretown, Little Italy and Westboro.
The highway was initially scheduled to be closed for 82 hours between 8 p.m. Thursday and 6 a.m. Monday, but the road closures and detours were lifted six hours early. On Sunday evening, construction crews were finishing the paving of the new stretch of highway, painting the traffic lines and installing the barriers before it reopened.
Using "rapid-bridge replacement" technology, construction crews are replacing the existing Booth Street Bridge. On Thursday night and Friday, crews demolished the original bridge, and then moved the new bridges into place.
"The conventional approach would take about two construction seasons and it would mean closing a lane at a time, obviously having a huge impact on traffic," Frank Vanderlaan, Ministry of Transportation, Highway Engineering Planning and Design, said on Thursday.
"Being able to do it over an 82-hour period has a huge benefit."
The Booth Street Bridge replacement is the first of five bridge replacements scheduled in Ottawa over the next three years.
The Rochester Street Bridge replacement is scheduled for the fall, with the Bronson Avenue and Percy Street overpass structures being replaced next summer. The Preston Street Overpass is scheduled to be replaced in 2024.
A live stream of the bridge replacement work along the Queensway is available on YouTube.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.