Project presentation

This project’s three-way agreement between the governments of Canada and Quebec, and the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake is a first in this country. It will be the largest bridge rehabilitation project ever undertaken in Canada.

The prefabricated concrete deck panels process selected for this work is the same as that used to replace the deck of the Jacques-Cartier Bridge in 2001.

This method offers numerous benefits:

• It is fast and effective.
• It facilitates and accelerates the daily opening of traffic lanes, unlike the current cast concrete that requires prolonged closures.
• It meets the strictest safety criteria.
• It offers a life expectancy for the bridge that’s superior to other methods (75 years).

During the work:

• The four lanes will be open to traffic during rush hours.
• One lane in each direction will remain open to traffic during night work.
• The bridge will be fully open to traffic during the winter (between construction periods).

The Mercier Bridge’s entire deck will be replaced panel by panel, mainly at night, allowing full access to the bridge at peak times.

To better understand this prefabricated panel renovation process, see our explanatory video of the first phase of work (Contract A).

Note that this method has also been used successfully to repair several North American bridges:

• The George Washington Bridge in New York
• The Golden Gate in San Francisco
• The Lion’s Gate in Vancouver
• The Halifax Suspension Bridge in Halifax
• The Laviolette Bridge in Trois-Rivières

Approximately 1,000 direct and indirect jobs will be created annually during the work for each contract, which does not include the economic benefits for businesses located on the South Shore and throughout the greater metropolitan area.

A two step project

The proposed replacement of the bridge deck is divided into two separate contracts: contract A and contract B. The Mohawk Bridge Consortium (MBC), a group of Mohawk entrepreneurs, was awarded contract A.

Contract A

Location

• Federal portion of the bridge located on the Kahnawake Mohawk Territory along the southern approaches to the bridge (Image de l’emplacement du Contrat A)

Description

• Strengthening of the bridge’s steel structure
• Replacement of the reinforced concrete decks on the three access ramps located on the Kahnawake Mohawk Territory

A detour lane bypassing the bridge access from Châteauguay will facilitate the rapid completion of this first phase of work.

Contract B

Contract B will be awarded following a call for tender.

Location

• Federal portion of the bridge between the southern ramps under contract A and the steel arch spanning the St. Lawrence River, along with a large part of the provincial portion of the bridge north of the steel arch

Contract B description

• Complete replacement of the bridge deck

A new, multipurpose 2.1 km pedestrian/bike path will replace the current sidewalk. It will be located on the west side of the bridge, spanning the north end (borough of LaSalle) to the south end of the bridge (Kahnawake). Once completed, this multi-use path will be similar to the one installed on the Jacques-Cartier Bridge.

The project by the numbers

The new deck will consist of more than 1,300 prefabricated concrete panels assembled with steel tension cables. In total, the new deck is an area of 40,684 m².

Contract A

• 15,687 m² of new deck totalling approximately 1.3 km of elevated ramps

Contract B

• Federal portion: approximately 14,560 m² of new deck area
• Provincial portion: approximately 10,437 m² of new deck area