Permanent Beaver River Bridge planning is moving ahead as Durham Region prepares to begin construction on a new permanent crossing in the Township of Brock.
The Regional Municipality of Durham says construction of the permanent bridge across the Beaver River, located on Regional Road 15 west of Highway 12, is scheduled to begin in 2026 and be completed in 2027. Funding for the project is being provided by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.
As required under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act, the region has submitted project details to the Navigable Waters Registry, allowing the public to review and comment on the proposed work.
The project will replace the current temporary Beaver River Bridge, which opened to traffic in November 2024. Durham Region says the temporary bridge has adequate capacity to support full traffic loads and has no posted weight restrictions, although vehicle limits under the Highway Traffic Act still apply.
Construction will be staged to reduce disruptions. The plan involves building the north portion of the permanent bridge while traffic remains on the temporary bridge. Traffic will then shift to the permanent structure before the temporary bridge is removed, allowing the remainder of construction to proceed.
Durham Region said this approach is expected to limit road closures to short periods, typically lasting only a few days at a time.
Until the permanent bridge is completed, a 40 km/h speed limit remains in effect through the bridge site and east of the Highway 12 intersection. The speed limit will return to 60 km/h once the project is finished in 2027.
