Samuel De Champlain Bridge

Extreme time pressure and smooth process

Dissing+Weitling, Samuel De Champlain Bridge, under construction, The Globe and Mail

Excellent teamwork between architects and engineers made the design process fast and effective.

  • Montreal
    Road Bridges and Tunnels
    2013 - 2019
  • Client
    Infrastructure Canada
    Collaborators
    Arup Canada/ Provencher Roy/ Associates Architects/ HLB Lighting Design Inc
    Size
    3.4 km

  • Spanning the St. Lawrence Seaway, which links marine traffic from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean and connecting to three major highways, Autoroutes 10, 15, and 20, the Samuel De Champlain Bridge is one of the busiest corridors in Canada and is vital to both the local and national economy.

    The bridge was built and will be operated for the next 30 years through a public-private partnership between the Government of Canada and Signature on the Saint Lawrence Group. Arup and Dissing+Weitling helped the Government of Canada achieve its objective of creating a world-class icon.

  • Dissing+Weitling, Samuel De Champlain Bridge, render, overview

    A bridge as intended

    Architect and Director of Bridges Poul Ove Jensen says:

    “In spite of an extreme time pressure the design process was unusually smooth, so it was possible to complete the tender design in about seven months. I am very happy that Canada decided to make the geometry of our design mandatory in the tender and that the bridge therefore stands exactly as intended. Now I just hope that this is the bridge the people of Montreal will call their own and be proud of.”