Off-peak lane closures begin today on the 4 Avenue flyover, kicking off 18 months of construction on the vital downtown artery.
The $12.5 million restoration of Calgary’s longest bridge will begin April 3, in a project that the City of Calgary said will extend the bridge’s life by 35 years.
Site preparations began in March for the downtown inlet, which was built in 1982. Recent inspections showed that parts of the bridge were deteriorating.
“The 4th Avenue Flyover is a very important structure as it’s used by many Calgarians and visitors to commute into downtown,” said Max Lacroix, Project Manager and Senior Structural Engineer.
“We understand this work may be impactful to those traveling in the area, local residents and businesses and we thank all Calgarians and visitors for their patience as we carry out this important rehabilitation.”
The City said that tackling the bridge rehab now would prevent the accumulation of damage, thereby reducing the cost and the construction time. They said
The work will include the addition of streetlights, rebuilding the existing concrete barriers, replacing the existing concrete paving overlay with a polymer-modified asphalt overlay and replacing existing expansion joints.
It’s important for Calgarians to keep an eye on potential road closures during the construction, as there may be off-peak lane closures on the roads beneath the flyover (Memorial Drive, Edmonton Trail and Riverfront Avenue).
Partial and temporary closures of Flyover Park will also be done to ensure public safety, the City said.
Road closures
There will be a series of staged road closures to aid work this week. Starting April 8, one lane will be closed 24/7.
“We know that road construction can make commuting more difficult. Many factors are considered when scheduling road closures, including coordination with other work happening in the area, emergency vehicle access, special events scheduled in the area, and available alternate routes, as well as the urgency of the work being completed,” the City said in a prepared media release.
“We actively monitor the impact of construction activities on traffic, and make every effort to minimize disruptions to your commute by coordinating work between projects, reviewing and changing traffic signal timing, and wherever possible, scheduling traffic impacts during off-peak hours and on weekends.”
· Wednesday, April 3 to Friday, April 5 – Off-peak single lane closures on the flyover to conduct pre-construction site surveys.
· Friday, April 5 at 9 p.m. to Monday, April 8 at 5 a.m. – Full road closure of the flyover to set up construction.
· Stage 1: Starting Monday, April 8 – One lane on the flyover will be closed at all times (24/7) and traffic will be reduced to a single lane.
Both lanes of traffic will be open during the Calgary Stampede.
Construction is expected to finish in late fall 2025, the City of Calgary said.
