Built in 1962, the original Champlain Bridge was a vital economic link for Canada-US trade, and one of
Canada’s busiest bridges with approximately 50 million vehicle crossings per year. This bridge, spanning a
total length of 3.4 km, comprised prestressed concrete girders and decks at the approach spans and steel
trusses over the seaway. The extensive use of de-icing salts combined with a sharp increase in traffic
volume accelerated the degradation of the bridge over time and led to the end of its service life in 2019.
In that same year, Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated (JCCBI) proceeded with the
deconstruction of the bridge and awarded the project to the Nouvel Horizon St-Laurent (NHSL)
Consortium, of which AtkinsRéalis and TYLin were responsible for the engineering component. The project had a $400-million budget and the deconstruction of the bridge started in 2020 and was successfully completed in 2023.
The deconstruction of the original Champlain bridge was a high-profile project that is located in a densely
urbanized area and crosses a very sensitive ecosystem. Consequently, a sustainability approach was fully
integrated into the project with many constraints. There were substantial risks with the deconstruction
works due to the deteriorated condition of the bridge and the substantial amount of rehabilitation works
that were performed on the structure over the years.
All of these aspects were considered in the design of the deconstruction by using an innovative approach
in which the different components of the bridge were carefully dismantled to minimize the impact on the
environment and promote the reuse of the materials. Comprehensive work methods were developed and
were as follows:
- Deck jacking from a catamaran barge: the deck was jacked up on lifting towers that were installed on a barge and transported to land for dismantlement;
- Controlled girder drop on the jetty: each girder was demolished at a specific predetermined location until it broke and then fell off;
- Lowering of the suspended span sections on a barge using strand jacks: the suspended span was cut and lowered to a barge by strand jacks;
- Reverse construction of the steel spans: the steel spans were dismantled piece by piece with a crane.
As a result, 250,000 tonnes of concrete and 25,000 tonnes of steel were revalorized, the impact of the
project on the surrounding environment was significantly minimized, and no issues relating to structural
integrity were encountered throughout the entire deconstruction phase.
