Gatineau, Quebec - Public Services and Procurement Canada
The Government of Canada continues to invest in and improve transportation and mobility in the National Capital Region (NCR) and is making headway with its commitment to replace the Alexandra Bridge.
Today, on behalf of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, the National Capital Commission (NCC) and Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) officials presented 3 proposed designs for the new bridge to the NCC Board of Directors as a lead-up to public consultations for the replacement of the Alexandra Bridge, to be held from October 1 to 24, 2024.
The integrated project team, made up of experts from PSPC and the NCC as well as a technical advisor, will meet members of the public at 2 open houses:
- October 2, 2024, from 4 to 9 pm
- Canadian Museum of History, River View Salon, 100 Laurier Street, Gatineau, Quebec
- October 3, 2024, from 4 to 9 pm
- Shaw Centre, Gatineau Salon, 55 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Ontario
Replacing the Alexandra Bridge is a complex project that requires all stakeholders to come together, and it will depend on input received through public consultations. The project team has reviewed a wide range of potential solutions in recent years. The designs were developed according to performance criteria for the bridge's design and comments from the public, Indigenous communities and stakeholders. Following a multi-criteria assessment, 3 designs were retained.
Rendez vous draws attention to the river as a foundational environmental and social component of the landscape. Its clean, contemporary lines lend prominence to its intersection with other features of the landscape, such as the escarpment on the south shore, Jacques Cartier Park and the Gatineau Hills, which are clearly visible from the bridge and lookouts on both sides of the river.
Echo sensitively reinterprets features of the Alexandra Bridge, preserving a strong connection to the past. Some of the structural logic, form and pattern of the bridge is inspired by the Algonquin birchbark canoe.
Motion is inspired by the American eel and pays homage to the river's ever-changing, dynamic movement. The design's 3 defining rolling arches allude to the river's flowing water, the contours of the shoreline and adjacent escarpment, and the curved façade of the Canadian Museum of History.
