Queen Street Bridge Rehabilitation Project

Update as of April 26, 2024: Effective immediately, the Town of Newmarket is closing the Queen Street Bridge over the railway tracks for public safety until further notice. This immediate action is based on the findings of the most recent site inspection completed by the Town’s Structural Engineer. The Town of Newmarket apologizes for the inconvenience and short notice on the closure; however, public safety is the Town’s top priority. Local and public access will remain available (using the detour routes noted in the map below).

Prior to the planned full replacement of this bridge in 2025 due to its age and condition, the Town began a regular inspection program to monitor and maintain public safety since 2021. By the summer of 2022, in order to allow public access to continue on the Queen Street Bridge, the Town’s Structural Engineer recommended a 10-ton load restriction with signage indicating the load limit. The Queen Street bridge has continued to see heavy truck traffic despite the load posting and has now deteriorated more rapidly than expected. As a result, the Structural Engineer has advised the Town to close the Queen Street Bridge immediately for public safety.

Although the bridge was originally slated to be closed for the purpose of the full reconstruction next year as Phase 2 of this multi-year project, this is an earlier closure than first anticipated. The Structural Engineer and Town staff are investigating potential options that may allow for a safe, temporary re-opening of the bridge between now and its planned full closure in 2025. The Town will also accelerate the tendering process in an attempt to begin permitting and construction earlier during the latter part of 2024 if at all possible.

Members of the public looking to access Main Street or Prospect Street can use Davis Drive or Water Street. Detour signs will be in place to indicate the closure ahead of time for road users. Please see the detour map below for more details.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we complete this important work to ensure the Queen Street bridge is safe for all to use.

For future updates, please check back on this project webpage.

About the Project
The Town of Newmarket is undertaking a construction project that will see the replacement of the Queen Street bridge above the train tracks (located between Main Street and Prospect Street). See map below for more information. This work is needed after regulatory structural inspections of the bridge, determined that the bridge superstructure required a replacement. Work on the bridge will ensure it continues to be safe for all to use while connecting the community to the heart of Newmarket.

This work is being done in conjunction with Metrolinx and Bell Canada in order to support the Future GO Transit Expansion Plan and the Electrification of the train tracks. This work is expected to take place in two phases.

Phase 1: Bell Canada utility work

• Directional drilling for the telecommunication conduit (2023)
• Splicing and reconfiguration of telecommunication cables (2024)

Phase 2: Town of Newmarket's Infrastructure improvements to the Queen Street Bridge (2025 - subject to completion of Bell Canada's works)

Breakdown of the schedule

• October to November 2023: York Region to complete their repair of the sewer and temporarily restore the area of Queen Street/ Concession Street. - Completed
• November 2023 to December 2023 – Avertex (Bell’s Contractor) will remobilize on Queen Street and Concession Street to complete the installation of Bell’s conduit along Queen Street between Concession Street and Prospect Street. - Completed
• Spring 2024 – Permanent restoration of area (relocating utilities, asphalt, curbs, sidewalks, driveways, sod, trees, etc.) Minor interruptions to traffic on Queen Street and Concession Street are anticipated during this work.
• January 2024 to December 2024 – Bell to complete utility work, which will involve cable placement and splicing of wires on Queen Street. This is low-impact work, and there will be minimal impact to traffic on Queen Street during this time. The Town will also be hosting Public Information Centers for the Queen Street bridge replacement project, which will provide residents with a better understanding of the schedule and impacts of the project.
• Spring 2025 – The Town commences construction on replacing the Queen Street bridge over the train tracks. The bridge will have to be closed during this work. The work is expected to be completed in Spring 2026.

Check back on this site under News Feed for updates on the project.