Provincial government announcing today it is looking for companies to do the work
Another step closer to building a second bridge, or twinning, the Garden City skyway.
Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria stood near the bridge this morning, with St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe and others, announcing they're ready to take bids, or request for proposals, from five companies to start the first phase of construction.
The Minister addressed the importance of a second bridge. "In the next 10 years we'll see over 5-million new people reside in the Greater Golden Horseshoe, and tourism picks up as the amount of residents increases, and the population grows. And, we have four international border crossings."
Many have questioned building a second bridge, instead of closing part of the existing one while it is fixed or refurbished.
Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff also addressed that question.
"If that bridge is shut down, those 100,000 people [crossing the bridge] are going to have to cross the Welland Canal, and you're not shutting down the Welland Canal. So, now you're stuck on a draw bridge going across the Welland Canal. And, I'll tell you, there will be a lot of people when something like that happens, who will say 'Why didn't you have a twin bridge like they do in Burlington?'."
The plan is to build the twin bridge, starting in 2026, then rebuild, repair, the original.
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