The 1950s vintage eight-span, precast concrete girder bridge carrying the TransCanada Highway over the South Saskatchewan River was nearing the end of its service life and was identified by Alberta Transportation for replacement.
Dillon was retained to complete bridge planning, preliminary engineering, detailed design, preparation of tender documents, materials fabrication inspections, contract administration, and construction supervision for the demolition and replacement of the bridge.
During the bridge planning exercise, our team recommended reducing the number of spans and piers, which was viewed favourably by regulatory authorities. Dillon considered environmental constraints related to river construction and feasible erection procedures when determining structure type. The replacement structure selected by Alberta Transportation was a four-span plate girder bridge supported on three twin-shaft piers. The multi-year project overcame multiple challenges during construction including the receivership of the original general contractor, as well as the 2013 flood event.