Proposed Design Concepts for the Alexandra Bridge Replacement Project

In May of 2023, a team led by Arup Canada, with Knight Architects as Lead Bridge Architect, established a design and architecture team to develop design concepts for the Alexandra Bridge replacement.

Through an extensive design process, the team has taken inspiration from a variety of sources, including feedback received from indigenous community members, stakeholders, and public engagement.

The design concepts were then evaluated according to the Alexandra Bridge Replacement Performance Criteria for Bridge Design to identify a shortlist of three concepts.

The vision for Echo is a reinterpretation of the existing Alexandra Bridge. It is forward-looking, while its origins lie in the past.

The design combines visual references to the historic truss structure, including a distinctive silhouette with two primary support piers, and a twin plane of structures through which the bike lane passes.

It does not just reference heritage qualities, it is also informed by qualities of craft, nature and Indigenous culture that root it firmly in this place.

There is potential for deeply meaningful connections between Kīwekī Point, Parliament, the bridge and the Canadian Museum of History.

The structure, the shape, and pattern of the bridge are inspired from the Algonquin birchbark canoe. This applies to the V supports and to the shaping of the bridge truss and piers.

Two V-shaped supports mark the main gathering points on the bridge. In the event of a bridge closure to traffic for events, these points would allow active mobility users to cross over and experience both sides of the bridge.

The cycleway is in the centre of the bridge, with pedestrians on the upstream side and vehicles on the downstream side.

The vision for the Rendez vous Concept was developed to strengthen the concept of a meeting place, which has long been the identity of this location on the Ottawa River.

The form of the arches combining at a single central support pier emphasize the function and lend this option a singular place over the river.

The central gathering place, when the bridge is closed to traffic, could accommodate a full-width use of the bridge, uninterrupted by structure.

This location of the Ottawa River, known as the Kīchī Zībī to the Algonquin Nation, has been a gathering place for Indigenous peoples since time immemorial, a place for cultural exchange and meeting between nations, which inspired this concept.

Thoughts about seasonal use and shading structures are being developed to fully utilize the central zone during times of gathering and celebration.

Two tall arches, which frame a central bike lane with pedestrians on the upstream and vehicles on the downstream. The separation zone between the pedestrian path and cycleway provides space for seating and gathering and can include openings in the deck allowing views to the river below.

The vision for the Motion design concept is inspired by nature and particularly the eel, which is native to the river.

This concept honours the efforts of indigenous communities for the restoration of traditional habitat of the eel and their respected wisdom and dedication to reconciliation and reconnection to the Land.

Three arches rise and fall, flowing over the river offering interest both above and below. Gathering points are marked by the sections of the bridge where the structure curves below the deck. These are supported below by a structural form that reaches out in a sculpted support.

This option uses a different cross-section arrangement than the other two concepts. This is an efficient ladder deck system with both the bike lane and vehicle lanes separated within the bridge structure and the pedestrian lane on the outer side.

This place on the Ottawa River (Kīchī Zībī) has served as a gathering place since time immemorial. Recognizing that the new bridge must function as a dynamic public space, each design concept includes dedicated public space. Whether during normal everyday use, or for programmed events when the bridge may be closed to traffic, the concepts provide a range of spaces for recreation and tourist travel, sightseeing, resting and a gathering place at special celebratory times.