Repair crews work on the Beverly Street train bridge - Date/Photographer unknown.

14 September 2012

Beverly Street in Cambridge Closed Until Friday Afternoon for Bridge Repairs

Cambridge Ontario - Work has Beverly Street closed under the narrow Canadian Pacific Railway bridge 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Friday.
 
Repairs started Monday on the old span that dates back to the construction of the Credit Valley Railway through Galt in 1879.
 
For decades, there were plans in the Waterloo Region roads budget to create a wider road passage below the tracks, between Dundas and Samuelson streets. Bridge widening was scrapped two years ago as part of a new city-wide roads plan.
 
Road improvements underway, and planned on nearby, made the Beverly rail bridge widening less important, said Rob Gallivan, manager of the region's road construction program.
 
On Hespeler Road to the west, a $25 million bridge over the tracks is expected to be done by Halloween. It's already half-open to traffic and has eliminated daily backups caused by slow trains moving to and from the Toyota car factory in north Preston.
 
In 2014 and 2015, Waterloo Region plans to rebuild Franklin Boulevard to the east. Eleven roundabouts are promised to ease traffic congestion there, taking pressure off the narrow Beverly underpass.
 
While there are no plans to build a wider vehicle path under the tracks on Beverly, the idea of a pedestrian tunnel there is being quietly discussed, Gallivan said.
 
Today, pedestrians have to squeeze beside traffic between the narrow cut-stone abutments. Any firm plans for a pedestrian tunnel depend on growth of pedestrian traffic in the area, spurred by redevelopment in the former industrial area, he said.
 
About 20 years ago, a pedestrian tunnel was installed beside Blair Road, at a similar narrow train underpass on the mainline Canadian Pacific tracks bisecting Cambridge.
 
Pedestrian tunnels are inexpensive compared to a new road bridge underpass, Gallivan said. They can also be installed without disrupting train traffic overhead during construction.
 
Author unknown.