With only 10 days until Victoria's new Johnson Street Bridge opens to the public, city crews fired up the blue lights that will give the structure its distinct look.
The blue lights were seen glowing in the Inner Harbour late Tuesday night as the city inches closer to the official March 31 opening ceremony.
"We're testing and commissioning the bridge in the night so we're free to do the painting in the daytime," said project manager Jonathan Huggett. "We'll be working right up until opening day on painting it."
Staff are still going through training to learn how to operate the new bridge.
Huggett said so far, the installation and testing of the structure has gone well and there are no issues that will prevent the city from officially opening it at the end of the month.
Final touches are being put on the pedestrian walkways, and Huggett says crews are putting down blacktop to connect the E&N Trail to the Galloping Goose Trail via a new overpass.
Huggett said the old Johnson Street Bridge will close to traffic for good at 7 p.m. Friday, March 30 before the new bridge is opened Saturday.
The event will be held from noon to 5 p.m. and attendees will be able to be among the first to cross the brand-new bridge before it opens to traffic.
A local conservation group has raised concerns about the new bridge's lights shining into the waters below.
The Gorge Watershed Advocacy group said in January that the bright lights will illuminate salmon heading upstream to lay their eggs, making them an easier target for seals.
In response, Huggett suggested the city could identify the most sensitive times for salmon spawning and turn the lights off for those periods.
