Winnipeggers worried about travel times, traffic jams after city closes Arlington Bridge indefinitely
'What am I gonna do? I don't have any income to get on the bus,' pedestrian says
Some people who previously used the Arlington Bridge to cross the Canadian Pacific rail yards in Winnipeg were still learning about the bridge's closure a day after the city announced it was indefinitely shutting down one of its oldest assets.
Josh Mulvihill had planned to take the bridge to pick up his children from school when he found it closed Wednesday afternoon.
"We take this bridge every day to get my kids to school, because they go to school on Wellington and then we live in the North End," he said. "[So] this bridge is faster."
The City of Winnipeg announced the bridge's abrupt closure on Tuesday, saying it will be closed until further notice after an inspection found the 111-year-old structure is deteriorating rapidly.
Mulvihill was surprised to see it closed, given it had recently undergone repairs. He worries the detour will lead to traffic congestion.
"I know when they were doing work there it was closed, so we always went down Salter and then it was always jam packed. [It would] take us like 20 minutes just to get over that bridge," he said.
To cross the CP rail yards, traffic must now take either the McPhillips Street underpass or the Salter Street Bridge.
The city is advising people to use either Selkirk or Notre Dame avenues as a detour, and to leave for any trips through the area as early as possible to avoid congestion.
WATCH | Winnipeggers react to Arlington Bridge closure:
For Ofelia Owen, the detour will add travel time for medical appointments.
"I went to the hospital for my final visit, thankfully, but I still gotta go back in two weeks," Owen said.
"But this is gonna be closed. So what am I gonna do? I don't have any income to get on the bus."
Cyclist David Wityk squeezed around barricades to get over the bridge on his way to work Wednesday morning, but found city crews had installed more secure fencing on his way home.
"It's actually my favourite bridge in the city," he said.
"I know a lot of people look at it and think it's kind of ugly, but it's got a style and I kind of, you know, got a soft spot for it."
City not neglecting area: mayor
The city has known the bridge was nearing the end of its life since 1967, but plans to replace it have been put off in favour of repairs.
Some area councillors and residents have accused the city of neglecting the bridge because the area isn't wealthy, but Mayor Scott Gillingham says that's not true.
"Whether it's Waverley West or up in the northwest in the Maples area or the northeast or the southwest, all of those areas have really, really grown, and there's capital needs and infrastructure needs that are still outstanding in those communities as well," he told reporters on Wednesday.
Public works chair Coun. Janice Lukes (Waverley West) said major infrastructure projects like the Waverley Street underpass were done because they were priorities for higher levels of government.
"To say that the city isn't prioritizing, we are such a small player when it comes to these big, funded projects that we have to make a really good case to the federal government," Lukes told reporters.
Around 13,000 vehicles used the Arlington Bridge every day, she said.
Provincial government's 'door is open'
The city budgeted $850,000 for a study to determine whether the bridge's life can be extended for another 25 years. That report is due back in February.
A plan for a new three-lane span in 2018 pegged the price of a new bridge at $330 million, but that would be higher now.
Manitoba Municipal Affairs Minister Ian Bushie said his "door is open" to discussions with the city on whatever it decides to do with the bridge.
"If we can help advocate on a federal level, as well as a provincial level, to be able to help with what needs to be done for the city … our government is willing to have those discussions, absolutely," he said.
For resident Helen Parent, a new bridge would be worth the estimated hundreds of millions of dollars.
"I think they should have demolished it and built a new bridge, because they've already spent so much money on fixing it," she said.
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