The province announced that geo-technical work will begin to take place on both banks of the Peace River near the Taylor Bridge.
The goal is to inform engineers about future load capacity for piles, if and when a new bridge is built.
Six years ago, the province announced a task force to find long-term solutions for the aging span. Built in 1960, the bridge sees about 7,500 vehicles cross per day. Constant repairs to the old span cost the province millions every year.
A $3.6 million contract has been awarded to Hanna Infrastructure Ltd. for the project. Equipment is mobilizing to the sites, with the pile-load tests to be completed by August 2025.
The work involves drilling cylindrical, steel piles into the ground and installing specialized monitoring instrumentation to gather critical geotechnical data.
Minimal traffic impacts are expected during the work. Some visual and noise impacts can be expected, with works occurring during daylight hours.