CN Rail to rebuild ‘vital’ northern Alberta rail bridge destroyed by wildfires this spring

CALGARY—CN Rail is planning to rebuild a key rail bridge linking Northwest Territories to Alberta after it was destroyed this spring during a particularly harsh fire season.

The railway said July 16 it will replace the steel deck of the span over the Steen River at the northern edge of the province, as well as rebuild the approaches on both sides of the bridge using concrete and steel.

The bridge, not far from the Northwest Territories border, plays a key role in getting fuel and other goods to the shores of Great Slave Lake at Hay River, N.W.T. Shipments up the Mackenzie Northern Railway are then typically loaded onto barges and transported to communities across the region.

Along with CN, the project has the backing of Suncor Energy Inc. and Imperial Oil Ltd.

Work on the 110-metre (360-foot) bridge is expected to be complete by mid-August.