Low Level Bridge closes Monday as series of bridge repair projects set to begin

Repairs underway on the Low Level Bridge is set to cause major traffic detours for vehicles entering the downtown core until work is complete later this year. 

Starting Monday, vehicles looking to cross the river from Scona Road will be rerouted to the James MacDonald/98th Avenue bridge instead.

Northbound buses including routes eight, 500X, 511 and 523 will also be rerouted along 98th Avenue. 

Only the southbound bridge will see repair work, but the city is blocking off all northbound traffic during the project. 

Ryan Teplitsky, an engineer with the city, told CBC News traffic modelling showed it was important to keep the southbound traffic flowing out of downtown. 

The major downtown connector is made of two separate bridge decks — one going north and another going south. The northbound deck, built in 1900, is the city's oldest river crossing. 

The southbound bridge followed in 1949, but last saw major repairs in 1994. 

The city will also reduce the southbound bridge to one lane outside of peak hours, but will still be open to foot-traffic, cyclists and scooters during construction. 

"The intent of this work is to extend this bridge's service life," Teplitsky said. But the bridge is still on its last legs and the city is planning to replace it. 

The work being done on the Low Level Bridge is now one of many major river-crossing bridge projects the city is undertaking in 2025. Since initial planning some timelines have been shuffled.

The Beverly Bridge on Yellowhead Trail is already being repaired, and the Dawson Bridge on Rowland Road will see repairs in the fall. The High Level Bridge has also been slated for work but Teplitsky said there isn't a concrete date on when work will start. 

Advocates for downtown businesses have been pushing back against the city's plans for back-to-back bridge work since the work was announced citing concerns around closures and access to downtown. Some are calling for changes to the city's major construction projects.

"Closures will continue to decimate our downtown," says Cheryll Watson, chair of the Downtown Revitalization Coalition. 

Watson says the core is already being cut off from the west amid other closures and LRT construction. The upcoming bridge closures will bring even more restraints, making it harder for people to reach small businesses downtown. 

She admits there has been improved communication from the city about the projects since last year. Still, she's asking the city for better long-term construction planning, minimized detours, smaller efficient construction zones and accelerated timelines. 

"Construction is a reality. We seem to do it the worst," Watson said. "We basically shut down areas of our city to get construction done and that's not what's happening in other cities around the world."

Puneeta McBryan from the Edmonton Downtown Business Association says many members in her organization are holding their breath. Faith in the city's ability to keep to a schedule on major construction projects is low, she says, and she's worried about potential overlap.

"We know that these projects rarely end on time," McBryan said.

When asked about frustration over construction timelines and construction Teplitsky said the city appreciates people's patience. He says there has been a lot of planning into mitigating the impacts of construction. 

"Edmonton's a tough place for our roads and our infrastructure, it's a really tough climate," Teplitsky said.

"If we don't do the work, it gets worse."