Reesor Road Bridge Replacement over the Little Rouge Creek
Client: City of Markham
Location: Markham, ON
Construction Value: $2,400,000
Services: Detailed Design, Approvals, Assistance During Tendering, Contract Administration and Construction Inspection
Key Features
- Replacement of 1925 historic single lane bridge, at the bottom of the river valley and on a sharp curve, the location of many automobile collisions
- New bridge is 3 spans totaling 75m in length and built on a relatively sharp curvature for a girder bridge and tight vertical curvature.
- The projected 50 year meander belt of the river is spanned with the centre section of the bridge
- Very soft underlying soils required the bridge abutments and piers to be constructed upon 550 metres of steel piling
Initially planned as a single 36m span bridge during the earlier Environmental Assessment phase of the project by others, CFA worked closely with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and the Rouge Park board to design a structure and incorporate construction practices that respects the natural environment and provides an overall net benefit to the creek and valley system.
The result was a structure 5 times the size of the one being replaced that permits the creek’s morphology to remain unimpeded over a forecast 50 year period. This enhances the opportunity for fish habitat and returns the creek to its natural state. Also, this removes the “choke point” in the creek which caused ice jams and flooding every spring thaw.
The selected bridge design is a three span concrete girder bridge with integral abutments, 75m in length. The bridge deck is curved in plan and the piers and abutments skewed to suit the creek crossing. Poor foundation conditions at the site limited the maximum embankment height, resulting in the multi-span arrangement which was more cost effective than a single, long span structure.
Prior to demolition, the existing bridge had to be wrapped to prevent migratory birds from nesting under the deck during the spring breeding season. This permitted the subsequent removal of the bridge without harming any migratory birds or their nests as protected under the Migratory Birds Convention Act.
The new bridge is much safer for motorists, with the road being raised by over 3 metres to minimize the dip through the valley, and land was acquired in order to straighten the curve in the roadway. The bridge deck is 12 m wide (twice as wide as existing) which meets current industry geometric and safety standards