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New Credit Valley Trail bridge connects community

August 27, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By Joshua Drakes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A new 40-metre pedestrian bridge spanning the Credit River is being celebrated as a major milestone in the development of the Credit Valley Trail, bringing the vision of a continuous 100-kilometre route through the Credit River Valley one step closer to reality.

Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) officially opened the bridge on Aug. 20 at its Tranmer property, part of the Upper Credit Conservation Area north of the Dufferin County Road 109 bridge. The crossing connects the east and west sides of the property and is a key link between Island Lake Conservation Area in Orangeville and communities farther south in Caledon.

CVC CAO Terri Hamilton welcomed guests to the bridge’s grand opening.

“We’re marking a really incredible milestone along the Credit Valley Trail, which is the unveiling of the new pedestrian bridge here at the Tranmer property, part of our Upper Credit Conservation area,” she said. “Where we’re meeting right now is the future trailhead of the Credit Valley Trail, It will connect to the nearly 27 kilometers of the former Orangeville-Brampton rail line that’s currently in process of being converted by the town to a multi-use trail, and this will link the headwaters through the forks of the credit and into Brampton.”

“Large shared projects like this remind us that community infrastructure is never the work of a single organization, but great things truly are accomplished together in partnership,” Hamilton added.

The bridge opening ceremony included prominent dignitaries and guests, with Orangeville Mayor Lisa Post present to congratulate the team behind the project’s completion.

“I am especially proud to see this project moving forward,” she said. “Orangeville is the northern gateway to the Credit Valley Trail, and Island Lake Conservation Area serves as a welcoming trailhead for residents and visitors beginning their journey through the Credit Valley River. This new bridge at the Upper Credit Conservation area strengthens that connection.”

“I want to thank Credit Valley Conservation, the Government of Canada, and the Government of Ontario through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. Thank you to Dufferin County, the Town of Caledon, the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation  and all the partners whose vision and collaboration have brought us to this day –– a huge congratulations to all of you,” Post added.

Scott Cafarella, manager of capital projects at CVC, was also present at the grand opening, and said that the team was incredibly pleased to see the project finally reach its conclusion.

“It’s a fantastic feeling to have this bridge open and in place,” he said. “After so many years of collaboration and planning and construction to be at this point and to realize one of the main missing links and connections in the Credit Valley Trail, it’s just amazing to see it all come together.”

Planning, design, permitting and approvals took about two years, including work with Dufferin County to secure a trail easement within the County Road 109 right-of-way. The bridge itself was fabricated off-site over roughly six months, then transported to the property in three sections on truck beds.

At the site, crews assembled the sections before a crane lifted the completed structure over the Credit River and onto its abutments.

The bridge’s distinctive enclosed design serves a practical purpose. Because of its proximity to County Road 109, a cage-like structure protects pedestrians from potential debris. On the north side, however, the enclosure is absent, preserving views toward the provincially significant wetland.

The project’s origins date back nearly a decade, when CVC’s Upper Credit management plan identified the need to connect the two halves of the conservation area.

“This project goes back to 2016 when we did our upper credit management plan for the conservation area,” Cafarella said. “We had always envisioned a bridge across the credit river here to connect the two halves of upper credit conservation area, and then also our Credit Valley Trail strategy envisioned this connection that would link the section of the Credit Valley Trail in Orangeville at Island Lake and link it with the rest of the trail.”

The $745,000 bridge was funded as part of a larger $3.1-million trail infrastructure project supported through the federal and provincial Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. Dufferin County also played a key role in approvals, construction logistics and establishing the trail easement.

Once complete, the Credit Valley Trail will stretch approximately 100 kilometres from Dufferin County to the Mississauga shoreline, connecting communities with the Credit River watershed’s natural, cultural and Indigenous heritage.

For now, however, the CVC now has a complete, ready-to-use bridge finally linking its two halves as one.

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