William R. Bennett Bridge, Floating road bridge in Kelowna, Canada.
The William R. Bennett Bridge is a floating road bridge that crosses Okanagan Lake, spanning approximately 1 kilometer. Nine concrete pontoons support the elevated roadway that carries Highway 97.
The bridge opened in 2008 to replace the 1958 Okanagan Lake Bridge, which could not handle growing traffic demands. The replacement became necessary to better serve the region's expanding transportation needs.
On 21 April 2005 Premier Gordon Campbell renamed the crossing, then the Okanagan Lake Bridge, after William Richards Bennett, a Kelowna native and former provincial premier. The name is the one most locals now use for the Highway 97 link between the two shores.
Highway 97 crosses the bridge with five lanes of traffic flowing in both directions. Pedestrians and cyclists have access to a separate pathway to safely reach the opposite shore.
The floating design was chosen because the lakebed consists of loose sediments that could not support a suspension bridge or similar foundations. At its deepest point near the middle, the lake is about 60 metres deep. The bridge is Canada's only floating road bridge.
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