By Cheryl Long
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W
hen the Île des Soeurs temporary
bypass bridge in Verdun, Que-
bec opened to traffic in October
this year, it marked a truly significant occasion.
Not only was access to the bridge a relief for
Greater Montreal commuters, but that phase
of the project – transferring traffic to the by-
pass bridge – was completed approximately
five months ahead of schedule.
The project has been managed by Jacques
Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated
(JCCBI), a publicly-funded Crown corporation
reporting to Infrastructure Canada. The tempo-
rary bypass bridge would allow traffic to be di-
verted during the reconstruction of the original
Île des Soeursbridge, slated for completion in
2020. It’s part of the larger new bridge for the
St. Lawrence Corridor Project that will eventu-
ally see the bridge span the St. Lawrence River.
Catherine Tremblay, Principal Director, Proj-
ect, Construction and Operations for JCCBI, is
a civil engineer and has spent most of her ca-
reer working in infrastructure in the hydroelec-
tric sector. She explained that JCCBI received a
mandate to build the temporary bridge while
Infrastructure Canada worked on the full cor-
ridor project. Operating within a $125 million
budget, the organization had approximately
two years to perform engineering and envi-
DECEMBER 2014
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