The Dessau|Cima+ consortium of Montreal has been selected to conduct the federal environmental assessment for the new bridge over the St. Lawrence River.
OTTAWA
The Dessau|Cima+ consortium of Montreal has been selected to conduct the federal environmental assessment for the new bridge over the St. Lawrence River.
The new bridge will replace the current Champlain Bridge, which hosts an estimated $20 billion in international trade each year. It will span the St. Lawrence to connect the Island of Montreal to the South Shore and is considered the busiest crossing in Canada with 11 million public transit commuters and 60 million vehicles annually.
“The environmental assessment phase is an important step towards building the new bridge,” said Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.
“The new bridge for the St. Lawrence is necessary to sustain economic growth and long-term prosperity in Canada, and I am pleased that this project continues to move forward.”
After the publication of a study of the Champlain Bridge’s potential for rehabilitation, Lebel announced the construction of a new bridge for the St. Lawrence on Oct. 5, 2011. The new bridge and related components, valued at $3 to 5 billion, should be in service in about 10 years.
The Champlain Bridge will remain in service until the new bridge has been completed. It will then be demolished.
The assessment will consist of environmental and technical work required to make recommendations to minimize the environmental and community impacts of the project. The public, local advisory councils, the private sector and community groups will have the opportunity to participate in the environmental assessment process. The bidding process was launched on Jan. 24.
From March 15 to April 4, the public was invited to comment on the Draft Federal Environmental Assessment Guidelines for this project, which will advise Dessau|Cima+ in completing the environmental assessment.
The assessment will take 18 to 24 months. Updates on progress and consultation activities will continue to be provided throughout the planning process and construction phase. Documents for this environmental assessment are available online at www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca.
The new bridge project has six parts: a new bridge for the St. Lawrence; alignment with Autoroute 10; work on Nuns’ Island; new Nuns’ Island Bridge; reconstruction and widening of a section of Autoroute 15 and demolition of the existing Champlain Bridge.
KELLY LAPOINTE
DCN STAFF WRITER
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