After several months of delays, one of Wallaceburg's main bridges has finally reopened.
The Lord Selkirk Bridge officially opened to traffic again on Wednesday evening. The bridge had been closed since February 2019 for major rehabilitation. Construction was expected to be completed by August but several setbacks occurred, including deficiencies and component issues being found while work was being done, which resulted in delays.
Now that it's up and running again, two lanes of the bridge are open to vehicular traffic and one sidewalk will be open to pedestrians.
Despite some snowy conditions this week Chris Thibert, director of engineering and transportation, said crews were working diligently to hit their targetted reopening date.
"[They're getting] everything open and safe for vehicular traffic and pedestrian access," Thibert told Blackburn News Wednesday morning. "All the work that was outstanding on the bridge really wasn't weather sensitive so they were able to kind of wrap that up. They will be continuing with some minor work for the next couple of weeks now following the opening of the bridge."
According to Thibert, the work that still needs to be completed will last about three weeks and may have minor intermittent traffic impacts. The ongoing works include installation of guide rails, railings on the bridge, as well as operational testing, commissioning and balancing of the spans.
"There's going to be some temporary jersey barriers being set up on the bridge...just to isolate the ongoing work that's going to be happening after the opening," explained Thibert.
Municipal officials are thanking residents for their cooperation during the construction project.