This bridge is located in Air Ronge and is an important roadway for the tri-communities. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

Montreal River

Elder seeks to name Air Ronge bridge in honour of reconciliation

Aug 24, 2022 | 4:43 PM

A local Elder wants to formally name a bridge that connects the tri-communities together and to the rest of Saskatchewan.

The bridge is located in Air Ronge and it spans the Montreal River where the current meets Lac La Ronge. It serves as a crucial piece of infrastructure that connects southern Saskatchewan with the province’s Far North.

According to an email from the Ministry of Highways, the bridge doesn’t have an official name. The email notes 7,060 vehicles crossed the bridge every day in 2020.

“If we didn’t have that little bridge, we wouldn’t be able to go north or south,” said Lac La Ronge Indian Band Elder Tom Roberts. “It was on my mind sometimes when I cross it and one time I thought ‘hey, it just says Montreal River, maybe we should name this bridge Reconciliation Bridge. I wonder what people would think?”

Roberts, who sits as an Elder with the Air Ronge municipal council, has already brought the idea up at a regular meeting. He also talked about it at the village’s flag-raising ceremony last week.

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Roberts mentioned feedback about the idea has been positive. He added naming it Reconciliation Bridge also wouldn’t be a new idea as it has already been done in places such as Calgary.

A wooden bridge existed before the modern concrete bridge. This image was dated to the late 1940s. (Photo courtesy of John Irving)

The Montreal River bridge in June 2020. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

The Montreal River bridge in April 2022. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

“Maybe if we can recognize this little bridge for how useful it is by naming it Reconciliation Bridge, maybe people would respect it more and not take it for granted,” Roberts said. “Reconciliation means a lot of things. By having the Montreal River bridge called Reconciliation Bridge, to me, it would bring people together.”

Aside from local traffic, the bridge is used to haul food, fuel, and supplies to communities throughout northern Saskatchewan. It is also used by tourists, as well as trucking companies going to and coming from northern mine sites.

Roberts doesn’t believe formally naming the bridge would cost much money. He said it’s a project community members could accomplish themselves if they wanted.

“The people can go ahead and do it and work on it on their own,” Roberts said. “It’s the only way it’s going to go. If we wait for the government, we’re going to be waiting until we are quite old. I don’t think the cost would be much at all. It would be just a sign, a recognition of how special this little bridge is and how it connects the communities.”

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno