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| Confederation
Bridge |  |
Types of Engineering
involved: Civil, Marine, Ocean, Geomatics
In 1873, when the people on Prince Edward Island voted to join Canadian
Confederation they were promised a year-round link to the main land by the federal
government. For 124 years that link was provided by a ferry service which ran
across the Northumberland Strait between PEI and New Brunswick. As the population
grew and tourism to the island increased, the cost of providing ferry service
also increased. There were other problems too. In the winter high winds blow through
the Strait and it is cold enough for thick ice to form on the water. Ferries were
often delayed or canceled due to dangerous weather or ice conditions, stranding
travelers on one side of the Strait or the other.
In June 1997, the ferries
were finally replaced by a permanent link, the Confederation Bridge. The bridge
is one of the most challenging engineering projects ever built. Its design and
construction were completed over 4 years by more than 2000 people. The final structure
is massive. It is nearly 12.9 kilometers long - about the length of 117 football
fields. It weighs almost 3.5 billion kilograms. If the average person weighs about
70 kilograms (155 lbs) the bridge is the equivalent of 50,000,000 people - more
than one and a half times the population of Canada!
The Confederation
Bridge actually consists of 65 separate sections which were each built on land
and then moved into precise positions by a satellite-guided floating crane. It
is designed to last for 100 years withstanding the driving winds and crushing
ice of the Strait and even impacts with passing ships. At the same time the bridge
was designed to have little environmental impact on the ecosystems within and
surrounding the Strait. | | | Back
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