New bridge for the Port Lands has arrived in Toronto

November 7, 2020, TORONTO, ON — Waterfront Toronto, along with Minister of Infrastructure and Communities Catherine McKenna, Ontario Minister of Infrastructure Laurie Scott and City of Toronto Mayor John Tory announced that the new Cherry Street North bridge has arrived in Toronto’s Harbour today, as the Port Lands Flood Protection project reaches a new milestone.  

Waterfront Toronto hosted an "arrival" watch party on its Facebook page to mark this important moment as the Cherry Street North bridge concluded its maritime journey. 

Over the last week, a barge carrying the bridge made its way down the St. Lawrence Seaway, before arriving in Toronto’s Harbour to be installed in the Port Lands. The-57 metre, 350-tonne bridge, is the first of four new bridges that will connect the new Villiers Island to Toronto, and the revitalized Port Lands. 

“These bridges will be a connection for the public to access the new island we are building, and bridges that will connect us to Toronto’s future. The bridges are another piece Waterfront Toronto is adding to make our city’s waterfront world class, just as bridges have helped define the image of cities like Chicago and Sydney,” said Waterfront Toronto CEO George Zegarac. 

“Work has been continuing all year on the Port Lands project, excavating the new path for the Don River, and creating Villiers Island. Beyond providing critical flood protection, this project is going to deliver a stunning new destination steps from downtown for people to live, work, and enjoy nature, as well as helping to drive Toronto’s economic recovery,” Zegarac concluded.

Waterfront Toronto will provide social media updates as the bridge is installed. 

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Quotes:

“The Port Lands Flood Protection project is about to reach an important milestone as the first of the Cherry Street Bridges makes its way from the East coast to Toronto. This transformative project will forever change Toronto’s waterfront and landscape. The Government of Canada is proud to work with its partners by investing in infrastructure that creates good jobs and builds vibrant, sustainable communities across our country.”
The Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities

“The journey of the Cherry Street North bridge is a shining example of how infrastructure projects connect the country and also build locally. From Dartmouth, out to the Atlantic Ocean, down the St. Lawrence, through the St. Lawrence Seaway, to Lake Ontario and finally to it’s permanent home on Toronto’s waterfront where the bridge will help to build Canada’s largest city thanks to the manufacturing by the proud and dedicated workers in the Maritimes.”   
The Honourable Laurie Scott, Ontario Minister of Infrastructure

“I look forward to the arrival of the first of the new Cherry Street bridges to Toronto’s inner harbour coming all the way from Nova Scotia. I know these new bridges will become an iconic part of our waterfront and a signature landmark in our already unique skyline. The Port Lands Flood Protection project is one of the largest waterfront revitalization projects in the world and one of the most ambitious and significant infrastructure projects in Toronto’s history. By working with other levels of government we are ensuring that this project moves forward and building up Toronto’s waterfront for generations to come.”
John Tory, Mayor of Toronto
 

Media Kit:

• Read the Backgrounder
• Watch the Video: Timelapse of bridge being loaded onto the barge
• Watch the Video: Port Lands 2024
• View the Image: Construction Staging (October - December 2020)
• Watch the Video: Construction Staging (October - December 2020)
• Watch the Video: Construction Progress drone footage (September 2020)

Image Gallery:

An artist rendering of the Cherry Street North Bridge
 

An artist rendering of the Cherry Street North Bridge

Deep excavation in the central river valley is nearly complete. Crews have started deep excavation in the Don Greenway.  Follow Rocky @TheRockRipper on Twitter for more updates as excavation continues. 

After areas have been excavated, a geomembrane and liner are installed to prevent any possible contaminants from leaching up into the new river. 

Deep excavation of the Don Greenway has started, north of the Ship Channel.

The combustion chambers of the StarX soil treatment system, which uses smoldering to treat polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon compounds, creosote, and heavy oil. Smoldering is a flameless form of combustion using heat from reactions occurring on the surface of a solid or liquid fuel. This is an efficient process, powered by the contaminants themselves. There are four combustion chambers that will collectively treat approximately 1000 cubic metres of soil per week. 

Crews are installing foundations for the Cherry Street South Bridge, which will bridge the new mouth of the Don River where it flows into the Polson Slip. 

The first new bridge for the Port Lands travelled over 1200 km on the Atlantic Ocean and St. Lawrence Seaway to get to Toronto. It departed Dartmouth, Nova Scotia on October 29^th. Learn more about the bridge and its journey.
 

The first of four new bridges for the Port Lands loaded onto a barge in Dartmouth, waiting to set sail for Toronto

A photo of the new Port Lands bridge in Toronto's harbour.

Left: An aerial view of the Port Lands before the start of construction. Right: Future vision of the Port Lands once Port Lands Flood Protection is complete. Villiers Island will emerge as a connected and complete community with parks and opens spaces along the Don River, the Keating Channel and Lake Ontario.

Media Contact:

Media Relations

Waterfront Toronto