The history of Saskatoon's Traffic Bridge

A large bang over the weekend echoed throughout the city as the Traffic Bridge fell onto the South Saskatchewan River. It was the final chapter in a turbulent history for the century-old structure.

1906

Construction begins on the Traffic Bridge

1907

The Traffic Bridge, also known as Victoria Bridge, officially opened on Oct. 10, 1907. It cost $106,000 and was paid for by the provincial government.

It was the city's first bridge specifically designed for foot and vehicle traffic and was built to connect the people of Nutana to downtown. According to the City of Saskatoon, the promise of the bridge was key to Nutana's agreement to join with the west side communities of Saskatoon and Riversdale in forming the city in 1906.

Before the bridge was built, the ferry and the railway bridge were the only ways to cross the river.

Local students commemorated the bridge's opening by singing a song composed for the occasion, according to the book From a little stone school by Lorraine Blashill.

"Yes, we are from Saskatoon,
The railway centre, famed far and near.
And proudly now we sing her praises,
To let her know that her friends are here."

1908

The Traffic Bridge was the site of Saskatoon's only maritime disaster.

The steamship S.S. City of Medicine Hat crashed into one of the bridge's concrete piers and sank. All people on board were able to swim ashore.

The 130-foot steamship, which was powered by a single boiler, sat at the bottom of the river for 98 years, undiscovered. Although some wreckage was salvaged by people in the city and most now resides in local museums.

1922

A streetcar derailed when it slid off ice-covered tracks trying to turn onto the bridge. The road, now Saskatchewan Crescent, was difficult for transportation to maneuver. Streetcar lines were eventually rerouted to the Broadway Bridge in 1933.

1961

The southern end of the bridge is raised to reduce the slope and improve traffic flow. It also allowed Saskatchewan Crescent to pass underneath. At this time, the bridge carried about 10,000 vehicles per day.

1979

The Traffic Bridge got a paint job. But soon after the bridge began closing periodically for refurbishments and adjustments to make the road wider as vehicles changed.

Early 1990s

Bridge is closed a few times after vehicles that were too heavy and large drive across.

2005 to 2006

The Traffic Bridge was closed to vehicles because of corrosion and safety concerns, but is stayed open to pedestrians and bikes. After repairs, it was reopened in September 2006.

2006

Two members of Saskatoon Fire Services found a large anchor in the river while dive rescue training in August. That spawned search and recovery dives to find more. It turned out to be the S.S City of Medicine Hat steamship.

A documentary was made about the discovery. The documentary titled The Last Steamship: The Search for the S.S. City of Medicine Hat premiered in 2010, but searchers did not find any significant wreckage.

2007

The bridge was given decorative LED lights over the summer that could change colour and move in different patterns. The lights cost the city $462,000 and continue to cause conversation.

But the community development manager at Meewasin Valley Authority, Doug Porteous, said the lights actually meant the city became aware of safety issues.

"I remember when they put those lights on there back in 2007. The person that did it from the city took a little flak because of the expense or something," Porteous said.  

"But it was the joggers running across the bridge that were causing the light strands to kind of disconnect, from the shaking. That alerted the engineers to the fact there might be a problem there because that's where it first kind of came up that maybe we should be looking at this bridge to see if it's compromised with the weight and that kind of thing."

2010

In August, the Traffic Bridge was closed due to public safety concerns as a result of advanced deterioration of critical structural elements.

2012

Stantec archeologists resumed the search for the ship wreck while the city was drilling to test the pier of the Traffic Bridge. They found a wooden structure and a variety of artifacts including ceramic tableware, silverware, and personal items like boots and buttons dated to the turn of the 20th century.

This was also the year demolition first began on May 28. The pedestrian access ramp on the south side was removed and the first span was severed from the bridge.

2015

The City of Saskatoon reaches a deal with Graham Commuter Partners to build a new Traffic Bridge and a north commuter bridge as a P3 project.

2016

Thousands of people lined the Broadway Bridge in Saskatoon Sunday morning to watch as explosive charges on the old Traffic Bridge in Saskatoon blew off two of its sections.

The first phase of the Traffic Bridge's demolition started with a bang