Starting Monday, a bridge in Severn will be closed until the spring, and the short notice given by Parks Canada has taken residents and township officials by surprise.
The township was informed early last year that the fixed bridge at Lock 42 on Canal Road, along the Trent-Severn Waterway, would be replaced and that the road would be closed.
However, councillors and staff were caught off-guard when they learned about the closure only this week.
“I thought that they would have given us more notice,” said Coun. Sarah Valiquette-Thompson. “It’s been definitely causing some concerns from people in that neighbourhood.”
Parks Canada initially said the road in the area of the bridge would be closed Friday, but it extended that until Monday at the township’s request.
Valiquette-Thompson said more notice from Parks Canada would have meant more notice for residents, emergency services and school transportation providers.
“Families need to be able to plan around that,” she said. “We know (the bridge replacement) needs to happen, but, going forward, we need to have more advance notice.”
Mayor Mike Burkett said he told Parks Canada “to give enough notice” in the future, but he believes the issue had to do with a change in staffing at Parks Canada. Another staff member took over for the person who had previously been communicating with the township about the project, he said.
“In the end, there was a disconnect,” Burkett said, but he also praised Parks Canada for investing in a new bridge. “In the end, we’ll have a bridge that’s good for another 50 years.”
A spokesperson for Parks Canada did not directly address whether there was a communication breakdown about the road closure. Karen Feeley noted the agency shared information about the project with residents in May and again in October.
“While we did not have a specific closure date at that time, we did indicate a forthcoming closure for upwards of eight to nine months,” she said. “In order to keep the total closure time to a minimum for local residents and visitors, we have sought efficiencies to reduce the closure time. This project includes a full replacement of the fixed bridge, re-facing of the bridge abutments, and road work on the bridge approaches.
"The bridge is being built off site in order to mitigate impact to the public and will be assembled on site over the following months.”
When in the spring the road will reopen is unknown.
Parks Canada is picking up the tab for the $1,469,905 project.
When it’s finished, the current gross weight limit of 12 tonnes will be increased to a full highway load rating, Feeley noted.
Updates will be sent every few weeks via email, she said. Those interested in getting on that list are asked to email [email protected] and include “Couchiching Fixed Bridge” in the subject line.
More information about all of Parks Canada’s infrastructure projects along the Trent-Severn Waterway can be found here.
The Canal Road bridge is one of three major projects Parks Canada has on the go in Severn. Burkett noted replacement/repair work is being completed on the fixed bridge in Port Severn and the swing bridge in Hamlet.
“Those are two major investments in our township,” he said.
