More than $5 million in repairs needed on Mackenzie King Bridge after new damage found

The city says more work is needed after engineers discovered deterioration on a section that wasn’t part of the original plan. CTV’s Dave Charbonneau reports.

Construction on the Mackenzie King Bridge in downtown Ottawa will continue for another two years after engineers discovered additional deterioration on a section of the busy roadway.

Work began in 2022 to rehabilitate portions of the bridge that connects Elgin Street and Nicholas Street. The original budget was $24.6 million with work scheduled to be completed next year.

Now, the city is budgeting an extra $5.4 million for the additional repairs after a condition assessment of the aging structure.

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“They did extensive surveys of the bridge while it was under construction, and they found this salt contamination in the bridge deck that maybe they weren’t fully aware of before,” said Ted Sherwood, an associate professor of structural engineering at Carleton University.

The city says completing the repairs now will save time and money.

“Making the investment now is cheaper to do it upfront, get it all out of the way now than waiting until later when there is a problem where it would be much more costly, much more construction woes and cost taxpayers a lot more money,” said Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney.

The City of Ottawa says the bridge remains safe and is open to the public.

“A condition assessment and renewal options analysis report was completed on the Nicholas Street Overpass by the City’s design consultant in early 2025. It recommended a bridge rehabilitation be undertaken in the near future to extend the service life of the bridge,” said the city’s acting branch manager of municipal design and construction Josée Vallée in a statement.

“This new and separate $5.4 million project is scheduled for design completion in early 2026 and includes the eastern portion of the Steel Viaduct Structure and the Nicholas Street Overpass. The design has been staged to permit both contracts to occur simultaneously.”

Drivers have mixed feelings about the disruption.

For Susan Hum-Hartley, the construction isn’t just an occasional inconvenience, it’s part of daily life.

“I live down here, so I’m not just cycling it, I’m living it,” said Hum-Hartley.

Living it comes with caution, especially when she’s on the move.

“I’m a senior and I’m not very good at biking. I often will walk past some of the stuff rather than chance it, because it’s a little iffy if you’re down to a single lane,” she said.

The construction is also slowing down cyclists who rely on the route for work.

“It’s very hard to drive on this construction, especially for the blocks of these roads. And it takes time to deliver the orders,” said Rohith Palakkat Anil, a cyclist for Uber Eats.

Despite the delays and added costs, Hum-Hartley said she understands the complexity.

“Complex projects, there are always little surprises and there’s funding issues and there’s supply issues and there’s labour issues. So, I’m sympathetic.”

The additional work bridge is now expected to be completed by August 2027.

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