News

Construction of the west abutment (see orange box in the diagram) will begin the week of January 11. This abutment is the foundation of the new Champlain Bridge on L’Île-des-Soeurs. This is a critical part of the bridge, and the work involves drilling and pouring concrete for 26 piles and the subsequent construction of an imposing 71 m by 33.5 m structure. Drilling is an activity that creates noise. The work will be done mainly during the day (from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and periodic sound level checks will be conducted by our Environment team to ensure that the work does not exceed the noise criteria, which are set at 75 dBA during the day. If this level is exceeded, the Signature on the Saint Lawrence (SSL) team will put mitigation measures into effect to correct the situation. The drilling work for the west abutment should be finished in early March.

One major step forward

Before the holidays, the SSL team poured the first 250 m³ concrete footing (with a total weight of 650 tons) which is 11 m wide, 11 m long and 2 m high, at the precast yard on the west jetty. The construction of this first footing marks the beginning of the production operations for the prefabricated concrete parts, on the jetty. A total of 38 footings will be made. To make these concrete parts in a controlled environment, four huge white domes are being erected.

The construction of the pre-assembly platform for the bridge’s steel superstructure and of the loading area for the various concrete pieces is also continuing on the west jetty, as well as the marine excavation that has begun in the river itself. The marine excavation involves preparing the river bed to receive the footings later in 2016. For more details about current and future works, we invite you to view the presentation made at the public information meeting on November 5.

We also want to remind you that while most of the work on the west jetty takes place during the day, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., some less noisy work may also be done in the evening and/or at night. In the case of heavy snowfall, snow removal operations may be carried out very early in the morning to ensure activities can begin at the worksite by 7 a.m. Based on current bylaws in the Borough of Verdun, snow removal may begin at 4 a.m.

Good Neighbourly Relations Committee

Finally, please note that on February 3, the first meeting of the Verdun/Sud-Ouest Good Neighbourly Relations Committee will be held at the Verdun City Hall at 7 p.m. (Salle du Conseil, 4555 Bannantyne). The general public is invited to attend these meetings, and a question period will be held at the end. We also encourage you to sign up for our newsletter which provides regular information on our progress at the worksite and on various topics related to the construction of the New Champlain Bridge Corridor Project.