New Ninth Avenue bridge opens after years-long delay

More than two years since Calgary's historic Ninth Avenue bridge was closed, a new one opened in its place on Sunday.

The new bridge, whichstretches across the Elbow River, connecting Inglewood to downtown Calgary, has suffered major construction delays and is expected to surpass its initial $23-million budget by up to 10 per cent.

Members of the community have expressed frustration with the length of the project and the impediments to pedestrian accessibility that the ongoingconstruction has brought.

"I think it's going to be probably a big improvement to the mess that's been there for a couple of years," said Rebecca O'Brien of the Inglewood Business Improvement Area (BIA).

WATCH| This is what's coming up next in the Inglewood bridge construction:

This new bridge stretches across the Elbow River and connects downtown and Inglewood

3 years ago

Duration 1:15

Construction on the newly open Inglewood bridge is anticipated to be fully completed later this spring.

"The bridge as an architectural feature is going to be welcome."

The pandemic, issues with procuring steel supplies and a contractor hiccup were all factors that set the opening date of the bridge back.

"This is an important route for connecting Calgarians and it [is] really critical to the success of the Ninth Avenue businesses," said Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra.

Two lanes of traffic will be open initially, one in each direction. Construction is anticipated to be fully completed later this spring.

The finishednew bridge will have four lanes, a change from the old bridge's original three. The city is still reviewing the best use for the extra lane.

"When everything opens upin the spring and you have this really impressive gateway between Fort Calgary, Mohkinstsis, the downtown and Calgary's oldest neighborhood, it's going to be a nice feather in the cap of our inner city communities," said Carra.

Landscaping, pathway construction and final road work are among the outstanding tasks that will be completed in the coming months. The temporary bridge will also be removed.

The city said about 20,000 vehicles cross the bridge daily.

"[The new bridge] is wider than the initial bridge but I think design-wise it's fun, it's interesting," said O'Brien.

"We're looking forward to landscaping and just getting on with things."