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TORONTO — The 8,100-tonne Progress Avenue bridge above McCowan Road, at the site of the future Scarborough Centre Station, was removed in 72 hours last month.

Removing the bridge, which was built in 1984, clears the work area for the new station, one of three on the future .

The bridge, which weighed about the same as 15 jumbo jets, was removed in a sprint in a co-ordinated effort involving dozens of people and machines.

In July, the asphalt was stripped from the bridge, and the streetlights, walkway coverings, concrete curbs, bridge railings, signs and sidewalk removed, states a post. A two-foot layer of sand was then placed down on McCowan Road and mats made from an eco-friendly solution of recycled tires were placed over existing utilities to protect them from demolition debris. 

The demolition was conducted by 12 excavators specially designed for use in urban environments, which were built to limit both dust and noise and are equipped with hydraulic breaking hammers.

The excavators broke up material from the outside boundary of the site, working towards the centre until the bridge deck was demolished. 

The rubble was transported to a lay-down area to enable the centre bridge support columns’ removal. The holes from the support columns were filled with material before the sand and mat protections were cleared from McCowan Road.  

The concrete rubble produced from the bridge removal will be crushed and recycled to use as a base for future construction areas at the site. 

There was about 3,000 cubic metres of concrete in the bridge deck and supporting centre columns. About 960 work hours were required to complete the demolition.