The Samuel De Champlain Bridge, colloquially known as the Champlain Bridge, is a

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern o ...

design by architect

Poul Ove Jensen Poul Ove Jensen (born 10 March 1937) is a Danish architect. He is the director of the bridge department at Dissing+Weitling. He was responsible for the design of over 200 bridges in 30 countries. Biography Poul Ove Jensen was born on 10 March 1937 ...

and built to replace the original Champlain Bridge over the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, between

Nuns' Island Nuns' Island (officially Île des Sœurs; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun. History Originally called Île Saint-Paul in honour of the f ...

in the borough of

Verdun Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

and the suburban city of

Brossard Brossard (, , ) is a municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada and is part of the Greater Montreal area. According to the 2021 census, Brossard's population was 91,525. It shares powers with the urban agglomeration of Longueuil a ...

on the South Shore. A second, connected bridge links Nuns' Island to the main

Island of Montreal The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...

. The new span is located just north of the original Champlain Bridge, which is currently being demolished. The new bridge carries eight lanes of automobile traffic of the

A-10 The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF). In service since 1976, it is named for the Republi ...

A-15 A15 or A-15 may refer to: * A15 phases, a crystallographic structure type of certain intermetallic compounds * A15 road, in several countries * Antonov A-15, a Soviet glider * British NVC community A15 (Elodea canadensis community), a British Isle ...

, and

A-20 A20, A 20, A.20 or A-20 may refer to: Vehicles * A-20 Havoc, a U.S.-designed attack aircraft used in World War II * A20 heavy tank, a British tank which did not enter production but of which a downsized version became the A22 Churchill tank * A-20 ...

, with one lane in each direction dedicated for buses. It also includes a multi-use lane for cyclists and pedestrians. The central portion of the bridge deck will carry the South Shore branch of the

Réseau express métropolitain The Réseau express métropolitain (REM; en, Metropolitan Express Network) is a light metro rapid transit system under construction in Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. When completed in 2025, the system will link several Montreal suburbs and ...

(REM) automated light rail system. At wide, the new Champlain Bridge is the widest cable-stayed bridge in the world that uses two planes of cables. It is one of the largest

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and priv ...

projects ever built in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

and with an estimated 59 million vehicles a year, one of the busiest crossings on the continent. It is built to last 125 years with the usage of

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

and

high-performance concrete Concrete is produced in a variety of compositions, finishes and performance characteristics to meet a wide range of needs. Mix design Modern concrete mix designs can be complex. The choice of a concrete mix depends on the need of the project ...

, and replaces the previous 57-year-old bridge, which has become functionally obsolete and its structure having been degraded by the repeated application of de-icing salt.

Specifications

The Champlain bridge is a crossing. It includes an asymmetric cable-stayed bridge with a main span, a concrete tower, and stay cables in a harp arrangement. The asymmetrical back span is . The west approach structure has 26 spans that are typically .The east approach is long and includes a span over Route 132. The bridge was built as part of a larger $4billion project that included: * The Samuel-de-Champlain Bridge * A new Autoroute 10 (A-10) approach * A new île-des-Sœurs bridge and a highway on île-des-Soeurs * Improvements to nearby parts of the

The design of the Champlain Bridge addressed

seismic activity An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

soil liquefaction Soil liquefaction occurs when a cohesionless saturated or partially saturated soil substantially loses strength and stiffness in response to an applied stress such as shaking during an earthquake or other sudden change in stress condition, in ...

, light-rail transit loading,

ship collision Ship collision is the structural impact between two ships or one ship and a floating or still object such as an iceberg. Ship collisions are of particular importance in marine accidents. Some reasons for the latter are: * The loss of human life ...

, and ice loading. The bridge is configured with three separate decks, one for each direction of vehicular traffic and a third in the center for the

rail corridor. The northbound deck is wider to include a multi-use corridor for cyclists and pedestrians, requiring the cable-stay bridge to be asymmetric in the transverse direction as well as longitudinal. The main tower is shaped like a tuning fork and is supported by twenty-one drilled piles. The decks are supported in the approach spans by W-shaped

piers Piers may refer to: * Pier, a raised structure over a body of water * Pier (architecture), an architectural support * Piers (name), a given name and surname (including lists of people with the name) * Piers baronets, two titles, in the baronetages ...

Construction history

In September 2007, faced with rising costs for the maintenance of the Champlain Bridge (commissioned in 1962), then Canadian

Minister of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government agen ...

Lawrence Cannon Lawrence Cannon, (born December 6, 1947) is a Canadian politician from Quebec and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's former Quebec lieutenant. In early 2006, he was made the Minister of Transport. On October 30, 2008, he relinquished oversight of T ...

confirmed that his department was seriously considering the construction of a replacement structure. In August 2008,

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportati ...

announced that it was exploring different scenarios for a new bridge. In October 2011, then Minister of Transport

Denis Lebel Denis Lebel (born May 26, 1954) is a Canadian politician and who served as mayor of Roberval, Quebec and deputy leader of the Official Opposition. Lebel was born in Roberval, Quebec. Political career Lebel was elected to the House of Commons ...

officially announced that construction on the new bridge would begin within 10 years. In November 2014, then Minister of Transport

Lisa Raitt Lisa Sarah MacCormack Raitt (born May 7, 1968) is a former Canadian politician who served as a Cabinet of Canada, federal Cabinet minister and Member of Parliament (Canada), member of Parliament (MP) from 2008 to 2019. A member of the Conservativ ...

announced that she was abandoning the idea of naming the new bridge in honor of

Maurice Richard Joseph Henri Maurice "Rocket" Richard (; ; August 4, 1921 – May 27, 2000) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Montreal Canadiens. He was the first player in NHL hist ...

after consulting the family of the former ice hockey champion. Prior to the

2015 Canadian federal election The 2015 Canadian federal election held on October 19, 2015, saw the Liberal Party, led by Justin Trudeau, win 184 seats, allowing it to form a majority government with Trudeau becoming the next prime minister. The election was held to elect m ...

, the

28th Canadian Ministry The Twenty-Eighth Canadian Ministry was the Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, that governed Canada from the beginning of the 39th Parliament to the end of the 41st Parliament. Its original members were sworn into the Queen's ...

planned on imposing a $2-$4 toll on the new bridge, however, this plan was abandoned following the election of the

29th Canadian Ministry The Twenty-Ninth Canadian Ministry is the Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, that began governing Canada shortly before the opening of the 42nd Parliament. The original members were sworn in during a ceremony held at Rideau Ha ...

. In April 2015, the federal government selected the JV consortium: Signature on the St. Lawrence Group to build the new bridge. The consortium mainly includes:

SNC-Lavalin SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. is a Canadian company based in Montreal that provides engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) services to various industries, including mining and metallurgy, oil and gas, environment and water, infrastructure, a ...

, the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

ACS Infrastructure, and

Dragados ACS, Actividades de Construcción y Servicios, S.A. () is a Spanish company dedicated to civil and engineering construction, all types services and telecommunications. It is one of the leading construction companies in the world, with projects i ...

Canada. T.Y. Lin International is serving as the Lead Designer. Construction on the new bridge officially began on June 16, 2015. On December 19, 2018,

Minister of Infrastructure and Communities The Minister of Infrastructure and Communities (french: Ministre de l’Infrastructure et des Collectivités) is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the development of Canada's infrastructure. Infrastructure ...

François-Philippe Champagne François-Philippe Champagne (born June 25, 1970) is a Canadian politician who has been Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry since 2021. Champagne was formerly the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2019 to 2021. He was elected to represen ...

announced that the official name of the new bridge will be the Samuel-de-Champlain Bridge. The bridge opened to northbound/westbound traffic on June 24, 2019 ( St-Jean-Baptiste Day), with the official opening ceremony being held on June 28, 2019, and southbound/eastbound traffic opening on 1 July 2019 (

Canada Day Canada Day (french: Fête du Canada), formerly known as Dominion Day (french: Fête du Dominion), is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 18 ...

). The multi-purpose runway was opened in November 2019, while the REM train tracks are expected to be opened in 2022.

Construction method

In order to meet the 42-month construction deadline, many steel and concrete bridge elements were prefabricated, with a portion of the work taking place on temporary piers. Three jetties were built: one on the east from Brossard, one on the west from Nuns' Island, and one from the center, adjacent to a dike along the

Saint Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway (french: la Voie Maritime du Saint-Laurent) is a system of locks, canals, and channels in Canada and the United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North Americ ...

. *The pier through the canal, allowed, by means of

cofferdam A cofferdam is an enclosure built within a body of water to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out. This pumping creates a dry working environment so that the work can be carried out safely. Cofferdams are commonly used for construction or re ...

s, the storage of piles of construction material. *The central jetty served as a construction platform for the piers and towers of the section of the bridge utilizing

guy-wire A guy-wire, guy-line, guy-rope, or stay, also called simply a guy, is a tensioned cable designed to add stability to a free-standing structure. They are used commonly for ship masts, radio masts, wind turbines, utility poles, and tents. A thi ...

s. Temporary pillars used during the construction of the

Millau Viaduct The Millau Viaduct (french: Viaduc de Millau, ) is a multispan cable-stayed bridge completed in 2004 across the gorge valley of the Tarn near (west of) Millau in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie Region, in Southern France. The design te ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

were erected to support the cable-stayed span during construction. The main cable-stayed span above the seaway was assembled in segments by means of a crane. *The 500 metre (yard) long west pier was divided into three pre-assembly areas: a first for the concrete foundation footings that serve as the base for the viaduct section crossing the river, a second for the steel headers that complete the piles, and a third for the steel superstructures that wear the aprons. During the prefabrication of the 38 marine insoles, a pile primer and working platform were added to form a pile base measuring up to high. A super-transporter moved these stack bases from the prefabrication area to a loading area from where they were lifted by an industrial catamaran. The catamaran then deposited these bases in spaces drilled to a depth of into the riverbed. Two floating cranes finally overlaid the bases of the prefabricated elements to form piles and headers. The steel box girders supporting the three decks of the bridge were then deposited on the trimmers as they were completed.

References

External links

New Champlain Bridge
, project website
Live Traffic – Champlain Bridge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Champlain Bridge, Montreal (2019-present) Cable-stayed bridges Bridges completed in 2019 Bridges in Montreal Transport in Brossard Bridges over the Saint Lawrence River Buildings and structures in Brossard Verdun, Quebec Le Sud-Ouest Road bridges in Quebec

Specifications

Construction history

Construction method

See also

References

External links