Calgary to Spend $700,000 Replacing 300 Peace Bridge Light Fixtures

November 4, 2016

The city is spending $700,000 to replace 300 light fixtures on the Peace Bridge that can’t take Calgary’s cold winters, reports the Calgary Sun.

Crews from Allied Projects have begun installing new LED light fixtures on the iconic $24.5-million helical steel structure, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.

The current lights on the popular attraction, which have previously been replaced under warranty, just weren’t cut out for Calgary’s chilly winter, according to the city.

“The original light fixtures were sort of rated for indoors, that was the technology they had at the time, that’s what was chosen,” says Anna Melnick, a spokeswoman with the city’s roads department, in the Calgary Sun article.

“The harsh Calgary weather was getting to them. They were just burning out, it was too cold… These new LED lights will be good for 15 to 20 years. The old lights were only good for three to five years,” Melnick says.

Replacing all 300 light fixtures is expected to be completed in December and while cyclists and pedestrians can still use the crossing during repairs, it will be narrower because one side of the bridge will be closed while crews work.

Melnick says the new light fixtures will also improve safety on the Peace Bridge because the LED lighting will allow pedestrians and cyclists to see details clearer while crossing the structure.

The bridge is one of Calgary’s most photographed structures at night.

Read the full article: www.calgarysun.com/2016/10/25/new-peace-bridge-lights-to-cost-700000.

Photo source: MacDougall Steel Erectors Inc., which installed the bridge.