Louise Bridge to be closed for 9 days while it undergoes repairs
Motorists are asked to use Disraeli Freeway or Provencher from July 16-24
The Louise Bridge will be closed for nine days in mid-July while the span over the Red River undergoes repairs.
The City of Winnipeg is advising motorists to use Disraeli Freeway or the Provencher Bridge to cross the Red River from 6 a.m. on Saturday, July 16 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, July 24.
During that time, the Louise Bridge will undergo concrete deck repairs, expansion joint repairs and asphalt resurfacing.
Pedestrians will be able to use the bridge while the work is underway.
In 2011, city council approved a transportation master plan that called for the bridge to be replaced by 2016, placing it in the top tier of city infrastructure priorities.
Since then, council has committed funding to design the Waverley underpass and the Arlington Bridge, which were both second-tier priorities in the transportation master plan.
- Waverley Street underpass approved by Winnipeg city council
- Bowman: Plans for new Arlington Bridge must proceed as long as railyards remain
According to city budget documents, the design work on a replacement for the Louise Bridge — either at its existing location or further east in Point Douglas — won't commence until the city completes a design study that will determine the alignment of the East Transitway, a rapid-transit corridor that will connect downtown with Transcona.
The city may decide to build a new bridge to carry both motor-vehicle traffic and a dedicated bus corridor. The cost of a Louise Bridge replacement has been estimated in the hundreds of millions.