The historic Blackfriars Bridge is back in its rightful place above the Thames River.
Dozens of people gathered Wednesday morning to watch as an 800-tonne crane swung the main arch of the 143-year-old structure back from the west shore of the river onto its abutments.
"What made this lift complicated was the reach that this crane had to extend to. It used its 77 metre high boom, which is very tall and has been attracting a lot of attention, and it reached out over the Thames River - a length of 50 metres - to get the bridge back in place," said Doug MacRae, the city’s transportation, planning and design manager.
The procedure took approximately 30 minutes to complete.
“We’re proud of the crew and the level of care and attention to detail they’ve maintained throughout the entire process,” said MacRae. “We’re entering the home stretch. We can’t wait to reconnect Ridout St. to Blackfriars St. with a beautifully rehabilitated and reliable bridge later this fall.”
The bridge was removed last November, cut into sections and taken off-site for a $7.9-million facelift. Over the winter contractors hired by the city cleaned, labelled, and inspected sections of the disassembled structure. They dedicated hours to the gruelling work of removing old rivets and bolts and inserting new ones before sandblasting was completed.
In June, the bridge was brought back to the west bank of the Thames River for reassembly.
“[Wednesday's] lift reinstated the distinctive bowstring arch trusses but many bridge components still need to be added before the bridge is ready for the public,” said MacRae.
Construction crews will spend the next couple of months installing the deck for vehicles and pedestrians, a pedestrian hand rail, and additional horizontal members to both the top of the arches and underneath the deck. Londoners are asked to stay clear of the construction zone during that time.
"Now that the bridge is in place, we need Londoners to be aware that it is a work zone with hazards. We ask everyone to respect those hazards and not trespass into the work zone because it is not a safe place for the public," said MacRae.
The restoration work is expected to be completed this fall, at that time the bridge will reopen to traffic.
Dubbed one of the oldest and rarest bridges in Canada, Blackfriars Bridge was built in 1875. Since then the wrought iron bowstring arch-truss bridge has spanned the north branch of the Thames River, connecting Ridout St. to Blackfriars St. It was designated as a Heritage Structure in April 1992 and appears on both the Ontario Heritage Bridge list and the Canadian Register of Historic Places.
It was closed to vehicle traffic in September 2013 due to excessive deterioration.
The city has stated the latest restoration project will extend the life of the bridge by another 75 years. A grand re-opening will be held upon the project's completion.
The bridge has landed! #LdnOnt pic.twitter.com/KNslxM7rtR
— City of London (@CityofLdnOnt) August 15, 2018