Canada’s Champlain Bridge in Montreal is preparing to open for traffic, six months later than planned.

On 3 June, officials are planning to open the bridge’s northbound lanes, towards Montreal. The southbound lanes will then open on 17 June.

Once operational, the bridge will connect the Montreal boroughs of Verdun and Le Sud-Ouest to Brossard on the South Shore.

The new Champlain Bridge project has involved an investment of C$4.2bn ($3.12bn), including a C$3.97bn ($2.95bn) contract between the Canadian Government and Signature on the St Lawrence (SSL) for the structure’s construction and maintenance.

SSL is a consortium of SNC-Lavalin, Hochtief, Flatiron, Dragados Canada and Grupo ACS. It was responsible for design, build, finance and maintain the New Champlain bridge corridor.

The contract also includes operating and maintaining the bridge over the concession period that ends in October 2049.

The new bridge was designed by TY Lin International and International Bridge Technologies, and MMM Group.

“It will be 3.4km-long and have six lanes of vehicle traffic, with three in each direction.”

Arup provided the architectural design, while Canam-Bridges supplied and fabricated the steel superstructure for the new bridge.

The new structure will replace the old bridge with the same name, which will be dismantled by 2022.

Built in three and half years, the new bridge will have a lifespan of 125 years.

The new bridge crosses the Saint Lawrence River and Saint Lawrence Seaway. It will be 3.4km-long and have six lanes of vehicle traffic, with three in each direction. It also features a segregated cycle and pedestrian lane.

The new cable-stayed bridge includes a main tower with harp of cables. It will have a curved alignment supported by sculptural piers.

Infrastructure Canada carried out the project on behalf of the Canadian Federal Government.

Upon becoming operational, the bridge is expected to be used by up to 60 million vehicles a year and transport an estimated C$20bn worth of goods.