Landmark N.B. covered bridge to be demolished and replaced

[Stephane Dumas]

Here an article about a covered bridge in New Brunswick then I saw via a thread on Skyscraperpage forums.
https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showpost.php?p=9408272&postcount=9170
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/st-martins-covered-bridge-demolition-1.6188980

One of New Brunswick's most iconic covered bridges will be removed this week, following a lengthy fight by heritage advocates to protect it.

The Vaughan Creek covered bridge in St. Martins was built in 1935 and has been closed to traffic for several years after inspections found it unsafe for heavy traffic.

The Covered Bridges Conservation Association of New Brunswick advocated keeping the bridge in the village, about 46 kilometres east of Saint John on the Bay of Fundy.

"We're rather disappointed," said Ray Boucher, the association's president. "We're sorry to see it go, of course, but the new timber bridge is a good compromise."

In January, the provincial government announced plans to replace the bridge with a two-lane structure designed to resemble the current one.

It will replace a temporary one-lane steel bridge, which was put in place for several years as a temporary solution.

The construction of the new timber bridge will begin in October, and is set to be completed in the summer of 2022, depending on weather, according to the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure.

[Dirt Roads]

https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showpost.php?p=9408272&postcount=9170

Quote from the author in this article:

The design of this bridge is quite interesting. I have never seen a "divided" covered bridge before.

In West Virginia, we call this double-barreled.  Here's the "big one" on US-50 in Philippi:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/happilyretired/4092130934

[vdeane]

Department of Transportation and Infrastructure?  Isn't it usually a Ministry rather than a Department in Canada?

[Dirt Roads]

Department of Transportation and Infrastructure?  Isn't it usually a Ministry rather than a Department in Canada?

Not all of them.  In addition to New Bruswick, it looks like Nova Scotia, Price Edward Island, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories all have Departments of Transportation and Infrastructure instead of ministries (Manitoba appears to have separate departments for Infrastructure versus Transportation).  But when I was consulting with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, they were very clear about the use of the word Ministry and made sure that all of our documents included information about their status as a Crown Corporation.

[ghYHZ]

Department of Transportation and Infrastructure?  Isn't it usually a Ministry rather than a Department in Canada?

Not all of them.  In addition to New Bruswick, it looks like Nova Scotia, Price Edward Island, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories all have Departments of Transportation and Infrastructure instead of ministries.....

Here in Nova Scotia until recently the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal (TIR) was under the Minister of  Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. Now after a recent provincial election with a change in government (Liberal Party out and the Progressive Conservatives in) TIR now falls under the new Minister of Public Works.

(a Minister is a Cabinet Minister of the governing party in the Provincial Legislature)

[Stephane Dumas]

Time to bump this thread by showing some photos of the new covered bridge who replaced the old one.
https://tourismnewbrunswick.ca/listing/vaughan-creek-covered-bridge-irish-river-no-1
and there's more pictures on this French blog.
https://pontscouverts.com/blogue/2023/04/11/les-ponts-couverts-de-la-riviere-irish-au-nouveau-brunswick/

[Plutonic Panda]

Sorry if this has been discussed before, but what is the point of a covered bridge? Personally, I like them.

[Rothman]

Sorry if this has been discussed before, but what is the point of a covered bridge? Personally, I like them.

To protect the structure.

[triplemultiplex]

Back in the day before the invention of treated lumber, the roof kept the snow and rain off the wooden bridge deck.  Moisture makes the wood decompose faster so the idea of the roof was to minimize the amount of moisture the deck would be exposed to, thus extending its lifespan.