Demolition of the Bear River train bridge.

19 October 2011

The Bridges Come a Tumbling Down

Annapolis County Nova Scotia - The Bear River and Sissiboo River train bridges will soon be history.
 
Demolition crews have removed all the sections over land.
 
Rick Jacques, trails coordinator for the Annapolis Valley Trails Coalition says they have also finished all the necessary test blasts before seeking final approval from Environment Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for the marine sections.
 
After they receive the necessary approvals, barges will position large A-frame cranes under the bridges and lower the spans.
 
Jacques says blasting on the piers of the Bear River train bridge will require closing the 101 Highway. He estimates the closures will only last for "eight to ten minutes."
 
He said consultants determined that maintaining the two bridges would have cost $20 million for ten years of use. The Department of Natural Resources owns the bridges and decided they needed to be removed, mostly for safety reasons.
 
"It is sad to see any railway infrastructure disappear," says Jacques. "There is very little along the rail bed now to let you know it was a railway. They look very much like roads. On the bright side though, this is the first time anyone has been able to drive along and look out at the Basin and the Digby Gut. It is now one of the most fantastic views in the province."
 
The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal is in charge of the demolition and awarded the tender to R.J. MacIsaac of Antigonish.
 
David Salter, a spokesperson with Transportation, says the rest of the steel should be stripped from the Bear River train bridge by the end of December and from the Sissiboo train bridge by the end of January.
 
The demolition of the two bridges will cost approximately $3.3 million.
 
The Moose River train bridge is also up for demolition but was not tendered this fall says Salter mainly because of funding issues.
 
Jonathan Riley.