Upgrades for Souris River bridges

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This article was published 28/07/2023 (1014 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two bridges crossing the Souris River near Westman communities have been earmarked for replacement and repairs worth millions of dollars.

The first bridge, on Highway 3 near Melita, will be completely replaced with a new structure worth $19.5 million, according to a provincial government media release sent out Thursday.

The second, which is on Highway 2 near Wawanesa, will receive upgrades, including flood protection measures totalling around $1.7 million.

Infrastructure Minister Doyle Piwniuk said in the release that the Highway 3 bridge has been weathered by floods since it was built in 1970.

“The existing Souris River bridge on PTH 3 was built in 1970 and it has outlived its useful lifespan,” Piwniuk said.

“Significant flood events in the past have taken their toll. The new bridge will be more resilient and designed to better handle the impacts of severe flooding and demonstrates our commitment to helping municipalities mitigate the effects of significant weather events.”

The release states that the bridge is a key commerce route in southwestern Manitoba that has more than 800 vehicles cross it every day. Construction is expected to start in spring or early summer 2024 and is expected to be complete by summer 2025.

Reached by phone, Melita Mayor Bill Holden said the bridge is one of the only ones “that weren’t replaced here after the last series of floods in 2011 and 2014.”

During the 2011 flood, Holden said water cut off access to Melita on Highway 3.

He wasn’t sure about the specifics of the replacement project, but expressed concern that the installation of a shoo-fly bridge — a temporary one — during construction could interfere with the town’s ring dikes on the river.

A provincial spokesperson confirmed by email that a shoo-fly bridge would be put in place in fall 2023 ahead of main construction to start the next year. It will be a single lane with signal lights at each end.

By comparison, the bridge near Wawanesa is busier, carrying approximately 2,270 vehicles every day. It was built in 1958.

Flooding is also the motivation for the repairs, with the release stating that repairs will protect the bridge from erosion and scouring to help it better withstand flooding.

Municipality of Oakland-Wawanesa Head of Council Dave Kreklewich said the 2011 and 2014 floods did a lot of erosion damage to the bridge, with water forming new banks around it as the valley overflowed.

“It’s something that has been causing issues over the last number of years, but it really doesn’t affect us that much in the village or the municipality because the highway just allows traffic to flow a lot better,” Kreklewich said.

The release sent out by the province did not state what kind of disruptions the work would present for highway motorists. Kreklewich said it could cause problems for farmers in the area if the work is done around harvest time.

The other potential issue for the municipality that Kreklewich identified is that if traffic backs up because of work, it could cause accidents that municipal emergency responders have to deal with.

However, the provincial spokesperson said Highway 2 is expected to remain “fully open during the construction work.” That construction is expected to begin in winter 2025 and completed that spring.

Last month, the province announced it was intending to replace the nearby Wawanesa Dam, which was built on the Souris River in 1939 and enlarged in 1951.

Kreklewich said Thursday the municipality is nervous about the potential damage a dam failure could cause and he hopes it gets replaced sooner than later.

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