THUNDER BAY — City officials are hopeful construction of two pedestrian bridges will be completed before school starts next week.
Mike Vogrig, project engineer for the City of Thunder Bay, said the last of five pedestrian bridges replaced over the last two years should be in place soon.
“We have a program to replace five pedestrian bridges in the city,” he said. “Five of them that were in the worst shape, they had basically reached the end of their useful life.”
Three of the bridges — located at Brent Street, Blanchard Street and in County Park — were replaced last year. During the 2025 construction season, the bridges by Clayte Street and Hartviksen Street are in the midst of being replaced.
The structures had all been about 50 years old, said Vogrig.
“We looked at whether it was worth it to rehab them or not,” he said. “It was just more efficient to replace them.”
The work started in July and Vogrig said most of the ground preparation has already been completed.
He noted the bridges are pre-built with pre-built abutments and the bridges are ready to go in.
“They’re just waiting on the abutments and once they get that, they can kind of just assemble it in a day," he said.
Once the bridges are in place, the remaining work includes trail preparation and paving.
“We hope the abutments are actually in this week so we can get it done before school starts, but it’s construction," Vogrig said. "Sometimes things get delayed and you have to work a couple extra days."
