Yellowknife (Apr 02/03) - Construction of a bridge over the Mackenzie River at Fort Providence will begin this November, which means it'll be open for traffic by summer, 2005.

That's the latest projection from the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation (DCBC) and it shouldn't far off the mark, said spokesman Andrew Gamble.

The corporation applied last week for "a host" of environmental permits required for work to proceed.

"The plan we have is pretty solid," said Gamble.

"It is generally accepted that a bridge will be a net environmental benefit over the current operation."

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans will now review the impact of the bridge as proposed on water quality and fish habitat.

The Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board will look at other environmental aspects.

These include land use, measures to guard against environmental spills during construction, and socio-economic impact on the communities.

The GNWT and the Fort Providence Combined Council Alliance signed a memorandum of intent (MOI) for the bridge last November.

It addresses design, financing, construction and operation.

The Alliance represents the Deh Gah Got'ie, the Fort Providence Metis, and the hamlet.

Gamble said detailed design discussions with the GNWT are now proceeding.

"The design is through the concept stage and we now know what it will look like.

"We are working closely with the GNWT on design, because of course they will own the bridge down the road."

The two-lane, one-kilometre-long bridge is projected to cost $50-$55 million dollars.

So far, the GNWT has contributed about $500,000 towards development costs.

It has also guaranteed a $2 million loan that will carry BCDC through the environmental assessment stage.

Gamble said the corporation projects raising about $5 million in equity and financing the rest of the roughly $50 million cost through "long-term debt."

The DCBC will recoup its costs through tolls on commercial traffic, tentatively $6 per tonne, said Gamble.

There will be no toll for private users.

Ownership of the bridge will pass from the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation to the GNWT in 35 years.

A similar public/private transportation partnership model in Canada is the Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island, noted Gamble.

"There are many others, including freeways."

The steel superstructure bridge will consist of nine spans resting on eight concrete-filled steel piers and two abutments.

The main span over the navigable channel will be 185-195 metres long.

It will be designed for a 75-year life.

The benefit to Yellowknife businesses will be significant. Yellowknife Direct Charge Co-op general manager Ben Walker estimates savings of about $100,000 a year in reduced air freight and other costs.

The co-op brings in about 14,000 tonnes of goods a year, including fuel, at a cost of about $2.5 million.

"We estimate our added freight costs during breakup this spring will be about $60,000," said Walker.

"That's if the river breaks on schedule. If it breaks when you haven't planned for it, then it can get really expensive."