Ontario construction News staff writer
Major construction has started on the new Lower Don Bridge in Toronto, a structure that will carry Ontario Line trains across the Don River between Corktown and Riverside neighbourhoods.
Construction crews cleared the area in 2023, relocated a watermain that beneath the railway, and shifted existing train tracks to prepare for the start of bridge construction.
Train tracks were shifted to all the Ontario Line to run alongside GO Trains through a shared rail corridor in the area. Shifting the tracks makes it possible for continued GO service during Ontario Line construction and makes space for new Ontario Line tracks.
With the site now cleared and utilities moved to a new spot, construction on the new bridge’s east support structure (or abutment) is starting with installation of two concrete and steel piers that will support the foundation of the bridge. Once the east side is completed, construction crews will move onto the west support structure.
The new bridge will be built north of the existing Lower Don Bridge over the Don Valley Parkway and the Don River.
Aerial view of the future Lower Don Bridge and the Don Yard, looking west. (Metrolinx)
The Ontario Line is expected see nearly 400,000 daily boardings and will reduce major crowding at the existing Union and Bloor-Yonge subway stations by up to 14 and 22 per cent, respectively.
