Public-Private Partnership highway brings better mobility and less idling time

The Northeast Anthony Henday Drive Project, widely known as Edmonton's ring road's last leg – a heavily travelled bypass route that carries more than 105,000 vehicles per day – has significantly improved commuting and the movement of goods and services around the province. The new free flow roadway reduces congestion resulting in less idling time and lower greenhouse gas emissions, and provides a safer highway due to fewer collisions.

As one of the busiest roads in Western Canada, the North Saskatchewan River Crossing is a significant portion of the Anthony Henday Drive roads encircling the City of Edmonton that has been created with the interests of stakeholders in mind, such as the Alberta Government, the Federal Department of National Defense, and the numerous daily commuters. At the time of award, the $1.81 billion contract was the largest transportation contract ever signed by the Alberta Government.

As part of a design team, COWI completed the successful pre-bid design and final detailed design of two separate "twin" bridges for the North Saskatchewan River Crossing and the south bound structure pedestrian walkway beneath the south bound bridge and provided construction services.

The underslung pedestrian bridge supported by the south bound bridge structure consists of suspended full depth precast panels with cast-in-place joints and cast-in-place end slabs. Each structure was designed to accommodate future widening of two additional lanes on each bridge. The pier caps of the south-bound bridge have an irregular shape to allow crossing of the underslung pathway. Two tall retaining walls, built on top of each other at the north bank, accommodate a multi-use trail making the bridge shorter and more economical.

AWARDS:

• 2017: Consulting Engineers of Alberta (CEA) recognizes the Northeast Anthony Henday Drive DBFO with the Award of Excellence for Transportation Infrastructure (Roads, Interchanges, Airports, Mass Transit and Ports).
• 2013: The Government of Alberta's Northeast Anthony Henday Drive Project won the Silver Award for Project Financing at the 16th annual Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships (CCPPP) Awards for Innovation and Excellence in Public-Private Partnerships - projects that are breaking new ground, boosting the economy, and improving the lives of Canadians.