CITY PREPARES TO AWARD CONTRACT FOR PARKWAY & TRAFFIC BRIDGE PROJECT
The City Administration is prepared to offer the contract for the building of the North Commuter Parkway Bridge and the new Traffic Bridge to Graham Commuter Partners.
“This will be the City’s largest infrastructure project ever,” says Dan Willems, Special Projects Manager with Major Projects. “We’ve gone through a very competitive procurement process and we thank each of our short-listed proponents for their submissions.”
A special meeting of City Council is set for Tuesday, September 8 to approve the project. Pending Council approval, Graham Commuter Partners will have 60 days to achieve financial close and, in November, a report will be brought back to Council outlining the financial details of the proposal.
“Graham Commuter Partners will build the bridges based on approved technical requirements and project design parameters, as well as finance and maintain both bridges for a period of 30 years while the City retains ownership of the bridges,” says Willems.
The North Commuter Parkway Project includes a six-lane bridge and 9.3 kilometres of new arterial roadways to link the Marquis Industrial area with the University Heights area. This link is accomplished by extending Marquis Drive across the South Saskatchewan River and connecting to McOrmond Drive at Fedoruk Drive, and extending Central Avenue from Fedoruk Drive north to the new extension of McOrmond Drive.
The Traffic Bridge will accommodate all modes of transportation while retaining a similar architecture to the previous structure as well as the riverscape of the past century. The new Traffic Bridge will include two driving lanes at 3.7 metres wide, and two 3 metre wide multi-use pathways on each side of the bridge to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists.
Through the P3 Canada Fund, the federal government will provide an investment of up to $66 million to the project, while the Province of Saskatchewan will contribute $50 million.
For more information about the Bridging to Tomorrow project, visit saskatoon.ca.
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