Moncton getting new bridge to Riverview

An important bridge and landmark in Moncton in New Brunswick is being replaced. The 80-year old Gunningsville Bridge that links Moncton to the town of Riverview to the south across the Petitcodiac River is narrow and often avoided by motorists because they find it too treacherous.
The new bridge is being constructed just upstream that will make crossing the wide and sluggish Petitcodiac River easier. Eastern Designers with the New Brunswick Department of Transportation designed the crossing, which is 425 metres long with eight concrete and steel spans. Gemtec did the geotechnical and soils work for the The community had input into the design, says, Michel LaCroix, district transportation engineer with the transportation department. The bridge has four lanes of traffic. and enhancements such as a bicycle lane and a four-metre wide sidewalk. Stone facing and special street lamps add an aesthetic touch.
Last month the federal government finally committed funding to build new approach roads and extend the road network serving the bridge. Approximately $40 million is being spent to modify the arterial road network, including extensions to Vaughan Harvey Boulevard and Assomption Boulevard, and the construction of a new east-west corridor.
The Petitcodiac River has the famous tidal bore, which occurs twice a day and is caused by surging tides in the Bay of Fundy, which are the highest in the world. At low tide the muddy bottom of the river is visible, but at high tide the water rises 7.5 metres to fill the banks.
The Causeway crosses the river about two kilometres upstream from the new bridge. The consulting firm AMEC is currently doing an environmental impact study for the possible modification of that crossing.