THUNDER BAY – The shuttered Woodrest Road Bridge should be replaced and reopened by the end of October, with a contract for the work headed to Thunder Bay’s city council on Monday for approval.
The infrastructure project is projected to exceed the $1.5 million the city budgeted by just over $300,000, an overage staff attributed to supply chain challenges.
The revamp of the bridge, which spans the McIntyre River south of John Street Road, will include installation of new footings, abutment and wingwalls, precast concrete girders, approach slabs, a new deck, waterproofing and asphalt paving, as well as grading and repairs of roadway approaches.
The bridge had been identified for replacement in the city’s asset management plan as early as 2016, said project engineer Mike Vogrig, but hadn’t risen to the top of the priority list.
The city was forced to temporarily close the bridge on Jan. 18, saying significant deterioration had occurred in some parts of the bridge since its previous inspection in 2020.
An engineering assessment determined the structure was unsafe and cannot reopen until it’s replaced.
Businesses on Woodcrest Road remain open in the meantime, and a posted detour continues to be available at Goods Road, off Belrose Road.
Work to replace the bridge is likely to begin after the May long weekend and should be complete by the end of October, Vogrig said.
Administration recommends awarding the work to LH North Ltd., which submitted the lowest tender for the project at roughly $1.92 million.
The seven tenders submitted ranged from there to $2.67 million, compared to the city’s pre-tender estimate of $1.4 million.
The higher-than-projected costs relate largely to the pre-cast concrete girders being used for the new structure, said Vogrig.
“Again, it’s a supply chain issue,” he said. “Typically, a lot of pre-cast in Thunder Bay comes out of Lafarge in Winnipeg. Apparently they were very backed up with work and couldn’t provide a suitable delivery timeline, so some other plans had to be explored… It came from a different plant, and that meant increased shipping costs and a little bit of an increased price.”
After contract administration costs and an HST rebate, the work is expected to cost the city roughly $1.82 million, exceeding the $1.5 million allocated for the work in the 2022 budget.
In a report, administration stated there were sufficient funds in capital carry-forward and the 2022 capital budget to cover the difference.
KGS Group designed the new bridge and is recommended to provide contract administration services at a cost of $95,000.
