Construction will see Alexandra Bridge close to vehicles starting in early January, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) says.

The closure is scheduled to run from Jan. 2 to April 30, 2021, a news release from the federal department said on Monday. While the bridge will close for all car traffic, the boardwalk portion will remain open to cyclists and pedestrians.

The closure will see crews replace the bridge's structural steel. After lanes reopen in April, construction on the bridge will continue from barges, the government said.

The bridge connects Major's Hill Park in Ottawa to Gatineau's Jacques-Cartier Park and the Canadian Museum of History.

"Given the reduced traffic due to the current pandemic, other interprovincial bridges are able to accommodate rerouted travel while the Alexandra Bridge is closed," said PSPC.

The bridge, which opened in 1901, normally carries nine per cent of the Ottawa-Gatineau vehicle traffic and a third of the pedestrian and cyclists crossing the Ottawa River.