More than four months after the bridge leading to Cherry Beach near downtown Toronto was locked upright following damage, crews are in the process of fully reopening it to pedestrian and vehicular traffic amid ongoing repairs.
Officials with PortsToronto, the federal entity that helps oversee activities in the Toronto Harbour area, told CityNews the bridge on Cherry Street is set to reopen to traffic at around 3 p.m. on Tuesday, but it’s scheduled to close again at around 12 p.m. on Thursday. It’s expected to reopen on Friday at 3 p.m. and remain in use until 12 p.m. on Sept. 17 with an overnight closure on Sept. 10.
According to the tentative schedule, which has seen multiple changes throughout the process, the bridge, known as the Ship Channel Bridge, should be back open on Sept. 23. It said the goal is for the bridge to be in “full operation” by Oct. 23.
“This is a complex repair on a historic 93-year-old bridge and has required engineering solutions that are new to the field,” PortsToronto spokesperson Jessica Pellerin said in a statement Tuesday afternoon.
“Dates and times provided are approximate and dependent on repair progress.”
Since April, there have only been three brief periods where the bridge has been accessible.
Throughout the lengthy closure, anyone looking to access Cherry Beach or the surrounding properties has been forced to take a nearly six-kilometre detour from Cherry Street east along Lake Shore Boulevard East or Commissioners Street, south on Leslie Street and west on Unwin Avenue.
The bridge sustained hardware damage in late April and it was initially supposed to be closed for only “a few days,” but the reopening kept getting pushed back due to structural concerns, sourcing a new winch system to operate the bridge and other issues.
Officials said the bridge was locked in an upright position due to safety concerns.
September 3: Update to the Ship Channel Bridge (Cherry St.) critical repair schedule. Please see our web page for details. https://t.co/146AjWig9w
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3 septembre: Mise à jour du calendrier des réparations critiques du pont du chenal maritime (rue Cherry). Veuillez…
— PortsToronto (@PortsToronto) September 3, 2024
