Hillsborough Bridge walkway studied

The P.E.I. government has completed the first phase of a study to determine whether the Hillsborough bridge can support a walkway for pedestrians.

The Hillsborough Bridge is the busiest stretch of road on Prince Edward Island, with about 38,000 cars and trucks crossing it daily. Because it is so busy, and isn't wide enough for a bike lane, many people are hesitant about crossing the bridge on foot or on a bicycle.

The province recently completed the first phase of a study to determine if the bridge could hold the weight of an added walkway.

"We did a desktop study based on the current code today," said Darrell Evans, manager of design and bridge maintenance with the Department of Transportation.

"As you can appreciate, since 1967, codes have changed. Vehicle weights have changed. And so what we wanted to do is we wanted to see what additional capacity there was if any in the existing structure."

Evan said calculations on the bridge structure suggest a walkway is possible. A follow up study will place sensors on the bridge, and measure stresses on it as traffic passes.

If the province decides to go ahead with the walkway, it would be two to five years before it's built.

Question of the day: Is a walkway/cycle path on the Hillsborough Bridge a good idea?