A project as large and complex as the Confederation Bridge was bound to have a book or two written about it. This is one that we've come across - "
Bridging the Strait: The Story of The Confederation Bridge Project". Written by Copthorne Macdonald, the 128 page book was published in 1997 by Dundurn.
Is it the longest bridge in the world?
The Confederation Bridge is the world’s longest bridge over ice-covered water.
From Confederation Bridge
With construction beginning October 7, 1993, the bridge opened nearly four years later, on May 31, 1997. The billion dollar bridge partially replaced a ferry service which, until the completion of the bridge, was PEI's only connection with the outside world. At the other (east) end of the Island remain two ferry terminals supplying ferry service to Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and the Îles de la Madeleine.
The bridge required approximately 20,000 man years of construction and more than five thousand skilled tradesmen, at a total cost of just over one billion dollars. Building a bridge in this location, where ice covers the straight 5 months of the year was a unique challenge, resolved by engineers who developed a 52 degree conical ice shield located on each pier, causing the ice to break up. The design of the ice shields actually lifts the ice flow up, causing it to break under its own weight and continue flowing past the piers without causing damage.
See a description of the book's contents below.
Bridging the Strait
June 1997 marked the opening of the Confederation Bridge which spans the Northumberland Strait and connects Prince Edward Island to New Brunswick.
The bridge, designed and built by the international consortium Strait Crossing, is one of the most innovative engineering projects undertaken in Canada. It is the longest bridge ever constructed over ice covered water and one of the longest continuous multi-span bridges in the world.
Bridging the Strait describes the arduous trips taken by ice boats, ferries, steamers and ice breakers which have been the link to PEI. The author, Copthorne Macdonald, traces the events leading up to the building of the bridge. He explains the problems faced by the Strait Crossing team, and tells the story of how they overcame challenging obstacles such as ice, wind and treacherous ocean currents.
The stunning achievement of the Confederation Bridge is celebrated in this handsome book. It highlights the contribution of Strait Crossing, and Public Works Canada, who steered the project from conception to completion, and it provides a fitting tribute to the engineers and designers who solved the technical problems and the workers who sacrificed to bring the project to fruition.
From Amazon