UPDATED: Old bridge study haunts new year

By Mike Trudeau

Screenshot of cover of 2024 Federal Government of Canada Fall Economic Statement

On January 30, a Gatineau-area MP and minister announced the federal government’s intention to begin the worked needed to build a sixth interprovincial bridge across Kette Island by 2034.

Gatineau MP, and Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour, Steve MacKinnon made the announcement at a news conference in Gatineau. On his Facebook account, he reaffirmed the commitment with a post including a video of the conference during which he described the an east end bridge, in French, as a “project of Canadian francophones.” In French, he announced that after being a project of studies the bridge was now becoming a project of construction.

Another post, dated January 30, contained photos of the new conference with the text “The First Eastern bridge : 2032-2034” next to a green box with a white checkmark.

The federal government made an explicit commitment to building a new bridge across Kettle Island to re-route truck traffic from downtown and help commuters in last year’s Fall Economic Statement (FES).

Manor Park residents were quick to spot the short section on page 143 of the FES, announcing “the government’s commitment to an additional multimodal bridge over the Ottawa River,” and identifying Kettle Island as the site (referred to as “Corridor 5” in the statement).

The FES states the government’s commitment “enables the next phase of planning, including the impact assessment, design, preliminary site preparation, and a procurement strategy.”

The announcement surprised many residents. Last February, the government told voters it would not invest in any further large road infrastructure projects when it confirmed it would not provide funding for the third link in Quebec City.

A dedicated team of employees from the federal department of Public Services and Procurement Canada and the National Capital Commission is leading the project.

Both organizations’ webpages currently state that “in June 2024, the Government of Canada authorized further studies on the Montée Paiement to Aviation Parkway corridor.”

However, no further studies been announced publicly.

The websites also state that “the public, Indigenous communities and stakeholders will have the opportunity to share feedback and considerations. Public consultation and engagement activities will take place in the coming years.”

No public consultations have been announced related to the decision to select Corridor 5/Kettle Island.

Mixed reactions

The announcement was met locally with mixed reactions. Manor Park Community Association president Natalie Belovic told the CBC the selection of Kettle Island is “not really solving the truck smell and pollution and danger problem”, but rather “just shifting it into other communities.” (See page 6 in this edition for more of Natalie’s reaction.)

Others, including Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney, criticised the lack of detail, and noted that no new money was attached to the announcement.

In a statement to Chronicle, Rideau-Rockcliffe Coun. Rawlson King reiterates his opposition to a new bridge at Kettle Island.

In the emailed statement, he said, “I believe that construction of a bridge at Kettle Island is not a feasible solution to address unwanted truck traffic in the core, and would result in spreading unwanted truck traffic to other neighbourhoods. Further, the need for a sixth interprovincial bridge has not been well documented, and a previous study suggested that only 30 percent of current downtown truck traffic would use a new bridge in preference to the current truck route.”

He expressed agreement for Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe’s assertion that a new interprovincial bridge is not priority for the City of Ottawa. “The city’s primary priority is to obtain $36 million from senior levels of government to address its transit operating deficit. The recent federal economic statement instead committed money for more studies of a sixth bridge and a proposed tramway linking Aylmer and Gatineau to downtown Ottawa. These proposed federal priorities do not align with currently municipal priorities.”

Councillor King said he will continue to work with my council colleagues, along with my federal and provincial counterparts, to “seek tangible solutions to meet the modern transportation policy objectives for residents in our community.”

Text from 2024 Fall Economic Statement, under heading “Better Public Transit in the National Capital Region”

“The 2024 Fall Economic Statement also announces the government’s commitment to an additional multimodal bridge over the Ottawa River to further improve transportation connectivity in the National Capital Region. This commitment for the project known as the ‘Eastern Bridge’ enables the next phase of planning, including the impact assessment, design, preliminary site preparation, and a procurement strategy. Following Corridor 5, the Eastern Bridge will become an important piece of transportation infrastructure that will optimize public transit networks and eliminate truck traffic in congested downtown cores, in turn, boosting economic growth in downtown Gatineau and Ottawa, accelerating commutes, and making active
transportation safer.”

Screenshot of page 143 of 2024 Federal Government of Canada Fall Economic Statement
Screenshot of page 143 of 2024 Federal Government of Canada Fall Economic Statement