Work officially starts on Chief William Commanda Bridge pathway
Work to turn an old rail bridge into a multi-use pathway between Ottawa and Gatineau is officially underway.
A groundbreaking ceremony Monday morning for construction on the Chief William Commanda Bridge marked the official start of the project.
The $22.6-million project will convert the long unused rail bridge over the Ottawa River into an interprovincial link for walkers, runners, cyclists, rollerbladers and cross-country skiers.
The bridge just west of downtown, built in 1880 as a railway link, hasn’t been in service since 2001. The city bought it from Canadian Pacific Railway in 2005.
Mayor Jim Watson said the project will incorporate the bridge into Ottawa’s urban trail system, which he called one of the best found anywhere.
“When the multi-use pathway opens next fall, it’s sure to become a popular active transportation corridor, linking a network of pathways and public transit on both sides of the river, and providing residents with more environmentally-friendly commuting options.”
Construction on the Chief William Commanda Bridge multi-use pathway is officially underway. (Peter Szperling/CTV News Ottawa)
The project includes rehabilitation work on the bridge’s structural components and a new timber deck on top of the existing rail track.
There will be a steel cable railing system, LED lighting and benches for rest areas. The work also includes linking the bridge to Ottawa’s Trillium Pathway and the Voyageurs’ Pathway in Gatineau.
The bridge is scheduled to open next fall, but some work on the piers and a pathway connecting it to Lemieux Island is scheduled to last until 2024.
Lemieux Island, a popular off-leash dog park, has been closed to the public since September for construction.
“Today marks an important milestone in making sure that residents in both Ottawa and Gatineau have access to high quality active transportation networks,” Treasury Board president Mona Fortier said in a news release.
Formerly called the Prince of Wales bridge, the city renamed the bridge after Chief William Commanda in July. Command was chief of the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation from 1951 to 1970.
The city is funding $14 million of the project, with the federal government covering the remaining $8.6 million.
The city is allocating two per cent of the pathway construction budget to commission Algonquin art for the site.
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.
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.
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.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
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.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
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.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.