Calgary's 12th Street S.E. bridge replacement unveiled

An arched steel box girder design has been chosen to replace the 12th Street S.E. bridge and the city says it will be wider, safer, flood resistant and easier to maintain.

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The $19-million replacementwas released at a public information session Wednesday.

Katherine Hikita, the project manager, says talk of replacing the bridge that spans the Bow River between Inglewood and the Calgary Zoo began three years ago.

"The old bridge was actually built for horse and buggy. It was never really intended for cars,"Hikita said.

"It has outlasted and outperformed what the original expectations would have been."

Construction will begin next year with a completion date pegged for 2017, weather permitting.

Hikita says currently the city is preparing contract documents and working on finer details.

"Our next step is going to a tender and getting a contractor on board," she said.

The city plans to commemorate the original bridge with public inputif it can be salvaged when it's taken down.

About 8,000 vehicles crossthe bridge daily, according to 2012 data, but truck traffic has been banned since the 2013 flood.