Facts you never knew about the Jacques-Cartier Bridge

Perhaps Montreal’s most iconic bridge, the Jacques-Cartier is full of little secrets and fun facts that most people don’t have a clue about! Because it was featured in a question on “Are you Smarter than Sam” this morning, here are some of the top facts about the bridge… And maybe useful things to know if ever you get to play against Sam!  

1. It was inaugurated in 1930… After construction began 5 years earlier.
2. It was a year and a half AHEAD of schedule…
3. It measures exactly 3,425.6 metres or 11,239 feet in length.
4. It’s the 3rd busiest bridge in Canda, after the Champlain Bridge (#1) and the Port Mann Bridge in Vancouver(#2).
5. It was originally named Pont du Havre (Montreal Harbour Bridge) but renamed in 1993 to honour Jacques Cartier’s first voyage up the Saint-Lawrence, 400 years earlier.
6. It has another name - a nickname in fact - Pont Courbé (Curved Bridge or Crooked Bridge) because it distinctively zig-zags into its Montreal approach. This is because of one stubborn landowner who refused to sell his factory to the federal government during buyouts in the 1920’s. The factory has since closed, but the building is still there!
7. The bridge’s 4 finials, its highest points, are vaguely Eiffel-tower shaped as an homage to the Eiffel tower.
8. The structure was originally a toll bridge. It used to cost 15¢ for pedestrians and cyclists to cross, 25¢ for cars, and 15¢ for each additional passenger.
9. The bridge features an enormous building on Île Sainte-Hélène. Originally conceived as a ballroom for high-profile parties, it was never used for that end. Today, the building is used for storage.