City to lobby Province, Feds for Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge funding
Gloucester-South Nepean Councillor Steve Desroches and Barrhaven Councillor Jan Harder are pleased that their Council colleagues have voted to formally request funding from the provincial and federal governments for the construction of the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge and its related roadworks.
“The Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge is an especially important project for the residents of the south end,” said Councillor Harder, “but it will benefit the residents of Ottawa - north, south, east, west - by alleviating congestion on the City’s surrounding commuter corridors. I am pleased that our colleagues acknowledged that today.”
Though councillors Harder and Desroches continue to champion the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge every step of the way, which is currently in the design phase, the City of Ottawa still requires a commitment from both the provincial and federal levels of government.
“Given the federal government’s recent $40 million announcement to fund the widening of Highway 174 in the east end, and in light of a similar commitment by the province, we are hopeful that our colleagues in the federal and provincial governments will come to the table with a commitment to the residents and businesses of south Ottawa,” said Councillor Desroches.
“It is a top priority for many residents and business owners who hinged their decisions to move to these communities on the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge. The bridge will enhance their lives and enable us to diversify the employment nodes across the city,” he added, referring to the planned move of the RCMP headquarters to the South Merivale Business Park, which is expected to bring thousands of employees into the south end everyday.
As a priority, the bridge dates back to the former Region as early as 1993. The City’s Transportation Master Plan identifies the project as a necessary piece of infrastructure and the Mayor’s Task Force on Transportation recommended that this project be completed by 2010. In keeping with the Task Force recommendations, work is moving forward at the City level with the design of the Strandherd-Amstrong Bridge.
“This bridge will be an integral piece of the overall transit and transportation puzzle. No matter what City plan comes forward, in the end the bridge will be part of it. Therefore, there is no need to wait any longer. We are in the design phase now, we need to forge ahead,” said Councillor Desroches.
“The Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge will provide the much needed link between the southwest and southeast transit corridors and open up a world of possibilities for transit in the south end,” said Councillor Harder. “It will help ease congestion along other major commuter corridors and help get people where they need to go more efficiently.”
Faced with tremendous growth in the south end, the primary concern of the residents of South Nepean and Gloucester-South is to have an appropriately designed bridge that serves the practical transit and transportation needs of these two growing communities. Between 2001 and 2006 South Nepean increased almost 50 per cent while Riverside South and Leitrim increased by 153 per cent and 506 per cent, respectively. In fact, the population growth in the South Urban Community is expected to be the highest among all areas located outside the Greenbelt.
“The bridge and the related roadworks have been a top priority for Steve and I - and for the City for over a decade” Councillor Harder said. “The City of Ottawa has laid its cards on the table. We have our share of the funding. Now we need a partnership with the province and the federal government.”
Background
Construction of the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge will enhance transportation services for both Riverside South and Barrhaven and provide much needed connection between the two major communities of Gloucester-South Nepean Ward. This new bridge provides an alternative river crossing to the Hunt Club and Bridge Street (Manotick) bridges. The Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge will consist of four general traffic lanes and two transit (bus) lanes. It is also proposed that the bridge deck be designed to accommodate the future construction of light rail transit lanes.
The Transportation Master Plan (TMP), approved by Council in 2003, identifies the Strandherd-Armstrong Bridge as among the City’s “Key Transportation Projects” to be required by about 2008.
On June 27, 2007, following a motion by councillors Desroches and Harder, Council directed staff to proceed with the preliminary and detailed designs incorporating transit as appropriate in order to finalize bridge component details and costing. The National Capital Commission (NCC) and Parks Canada must also approve the final bridge design before construction can begin. The Mayor’s Task Force recommendations support this project for construction in the short term.
It is estimated that the bridge structure will cost about $48 million. City officials have assumed 1/3 of the bridge use for transit. The west approach, which will require the widening of Strandherd Drive from the bridge to Woodroffe, is estimated to cost $35 million - of which $12 million will be used to construct transit lanes. The east approach, the widening of Earl Armstrong Road from the bridge to Limebank Road, is expected to cost $22 million. Although there will not be transit lanes on Earl Armstrong, buses can still operate on the road to access the planned Park and Ride.
Altogether, the bridge structure and its approaches will cost upwards of $105 million, $28 million of which amounts to transit needs.
