Chief William Commanda Bridge (former Prince of Wales Bridge)

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Good suggestions, but I don't see that happening. The City is looking for a quick and dirty (and the cheapest) solution. Best we could hope for out of those suggestions is the short MUP connecting with ORP West.

Exactly! I don't see how they could do all of that for anything close to the estimated $10.5 million. Putting a deck and railings on an existing bridge is cheap. Engineering a cantilevered extension is not.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by roger1818

Exactly! I don't see how they could do all of that for anything close to the estimated $10.5 million. Putting a deck and railings on an existing bridge is cheap. Engineering a cantilevered extension is not.

And the City's approach isn't necessary a bad thing. Get it done fast and cheap after a decade and a half of turning our thumbs. It will provide a proof of concept for later upgrades as necessary.

EDIT: Just got a flash of the Trillium Line. Build it fast and cheap. Proof of concept. Attempt a half assed upgrade 13 years in. Spend $600 million for barely any improvements to the original line and provide a half assed airport link... stations in farm fields...

[lrt's friend]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

And the City's approach isn't necessary a bad thing. Get it done fast and cheap after a decade and a half of turning our thumbs. It will provide a proof of concept for later upgrades as necessary.

EDIT: Just got a flash of the Trillium Line. Build it fast and cheap. Proof of concept. Attempt a half assed upgrade 13 years in. Spend $600 million for barely any improvements to the original line and provide a half assed airport link... stations in farm fields...

Haha! Don't build a station where people actually live today (Riverview Park n Ride). Another cheap out move for the Trillium Line.

[J.OT13]

From Leiper's newsletter:

Lemieux Island bridge dogs and construction impacts

The renovation of the Prince of Wales bridge into a pedestrian/cycling connection across the river will see some tree removal starting in April. Councillor Catherine McKenney and I have also received a high level look at the construction this year through next when it re-opens in the spring. Because of the way the work is proposed to be staged, the informal dog park will be inaccessible during construction. I'm committed through my office to try to find some alternative if possible since I know that water access is greatly appreciated by many owners.

[J.OT13]

Consultation on renaming the bridge for Chief William Commanda.

https://ottawa.ca/en/news/city-seeki...aming-proposal

[J.OT13]

Funding announcement on Monday.

Jon Willing
@JonathanWilling

Looks like municipal and federal politicians from both sides of the Ottawa River are going to hold a presser Monday along the access road to Lemieux Island, a perfect spot to see the Prince of Wales Bridge. #ottpoli
3:22 PM · Jun 18, 2021·Twitter Web App

City has always expected to get federal $ for this $10.5M conversion.

https://twitter.com/JonathanWilling/...69223965368328

[cprail]

Announcement canceled (Understandably) in light of the drowning...

[TransitZilla]

Bit of a strange article in the Citizen today with Lawrence Greenspon going off on the City of failing to improve the security of this bridge...

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local...f-wales-bridge

The deaths are obviously tragic, but I'm not really clear what they are looking for the city to do?? The renovated bridge will be a great and much safer to walk across but it of course can't prevent someone from climbing up and jumping.

[zzptichka]

Originally Posted by bradnixon

Bit of a strange article in the Citizen today with Lawrence Greenspon going off on the City of failing to improve the security of this bridge...

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local...f-wales-bridge

The deaths are obviously tragic, but I'm not really clear what they are looking for the city to do?? The renovated bridge will be a great and much safer to walk across but it of course can't prevent someone from climbing up and jumping.

I'm worried they'll wrap the whole bridge in chain-link after opening it, or some other BS safety theatre, which obviously has nothing to do with preventing people from drowning.

Wonder why people keep drowning? Is there some kind of debris on the river floor or something? Clean it up.

Maybe we should build some kind of small urban beach with a boardwalk and a platform on the bridge where people could jump safely?

[roger1818]

Originally Posted by zzptichka

Wonder why people keep drowning?

Probably because people overestimate their swimming strengh and underestimate the conditions. I expect Lemieux Island creates a vortex down stream that pulls you towards the centre of the river, making it harder to get to shore. Having a hydro-electric generation station and a waterfall a few hundred meters down stream doesn't help the situation either.

Is there some kind of debris on the river floor or something? Clean it up.

Maybe, but I doubt if that has a significant effect.

[J.OT13]

They never say what was the cause of death. Was it drowning from losing control? Or did they hit their head when diving? At the end of the day, people should be responsible for their own safety.

I hope this doesn't delay the rehab, otherwise that would be counter productive considering.

[Urbanarchit]

Originally Posted by roger1818

Probably because people overestimate their swimming strengh and underestimate the conditions. I expect Lemieux Island creates a vortex down stream that pulls you towards the centre of the river, making it harder to get to shore. Having a hydro-electric generation station and a waterfall a few hundred meters down stream doesn't help the situation either.

I wonder about what hazards there are created by the bridge itself. I watched a video about the effect of different types of obstructions, including bridge piers, on water flow. This is the video I watched. Essentially, the bridge piers back up water a bit on one side and speed it up on the side flowing away from them. What do the POW Bridge piers look like and what effect do they have on the water? Is it possible that with the strength the Ottawa River flows as coupled with the effect the piers could have on water flow that it creates a riskier situation. That's not including how deep the water is, what hazards there are below the water, and how high they jumped from. I've seen some people climb to the top of the bridge itself - would some people risk jumping from that height into the water?

It's too dangerous to swim in this section of the Ottawa River, and considering its proximity to Chaudiere Falls and the fact that several people have died on this section, and the risk of sewage/ waste water ending up in the river, I would avoid swimming in the river.

[Richard Eade]

Just so that you are aware of it, Rocketphish, this is the PRINCE OF WALES BRIDGE thread that you are posting articles about the ALEXANDRA BRIDGE into.

[rocketphish]

Originally Posted by Richard Eade

Just so that you are aware of it, Rocketphish, this is the PRINCE OF WALES BRIDGE thread that you are posting articles about the ALEXANDRA BRIDGE into.

Yes, thank you. Too many bridges in the news at the same time, and threads whose names don't start with project in question. Fixed and fixed.

[J.OT13]

That'll do it.


https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle...medium=twitter

[TheBrain]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

That'll do it.

[IMG]https://images.radio-canada.ca/q_aut...ture-58705.jpg[IMG]
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle...medium=twitter

That better not be made of flammable material.... if so I give it a week max.

Also, (I know it doesn't need to be said again but...) they need to hurry up and fix up that bridge....

[Uhuniau]

Originally Posted by zzptichka

Wonder why people keep drowning? Is there some kind of debris on the river floor or something? Clean it up.

The debris, at that location, is likely the floor of the river itself. Lots of rocks.

What the city needs to do is to create a safe place for people to enjoy the river in this way.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Uhuniau

The debris, at that location, is likely the floor of the river itself. Lots of rocks.

What the city needs to do is to create a safe place for people to enjoy the river in this way.

There are several official beaches along the river. I don’t think there is any way to make that section of the river safe for swimming without major infrastructure interventions.

[zzptichka]

Originally Posted by acottawa

There are several official beaches along the river. I don’t think there is any way to make that section of the river safe for swimming without major infrastructure interventions.

Nothing within walking/short biking distance from Centretown.

LRT to Westboro beach will help but it's tiny and already overcrowded and will only get worse.

We need an urban beach. At Lebreton Flats consultation the beach was one of the most wanted features I think.

[Kitchissippi]

I think kids are jumping off the bridge for the thrill of it, not necessarily for the swimming. The other day I saw a bunch cliff-diving off the rocky point between the Kruger plant and Portage bridge. It's only a matter of time until someone gets hurt there.