Canadian National Railway Company (CN) has announced the reopening of the James Street Swing Bridge after the completion of repair work.

The bridge is now open to pedestrian and vehicular traffic in both directions.

It had been placed under repair after a fire incident occurred on 29 October 2013.

Following the reopening, the driveable lane width remains unchanged at 9.33ft and the speed limit is maintained at 20km/h. The bridge now has a load-carrying restriction of 15,000kg.

Fort William First Nation Chief Peter Collins said: “I would like to thank CN for collaborating with our community to reopen the bridge. For our community, this bridge is an important link with Thunder Bay and having it reopened is key to economic benefits and access to services.”

As part of the James Street Swing Bridge repair work, the sidewalk has been widened to accommodate the lost width resulting from the addition of a protective barrier between the roadway and sidewalk.

To meet existing safety requirements, the handrail has been modified to match the railing height of 1.4m.

The James Street Swing Bridge had been closed to traffic since October 2013, when a fire damaged the span linking Thunder Bay to nearby Fort William First Nation.

CN Law vice-president Olivier Chouc said: “CN is pleased that the bridge is reopening and that this important road link in Thunder Bay is once again accessible to the public.

“The leadership of Chief Peter Collins was instrumental in getting us to where we are today and we would like to thank him for his commitment to the greater good of his community.”