A new lighting system on the Esplanade Riel bridge is made up of 55 LEDs. (CITY OF WINNIPEG / HANDOUT)
WINNIPEG — A new lighting system installed on the Esplanade Riel will have the downtown bridge shining brightly beginning tonight.
Colourful energy-efficient LEDs have been placed on the pedestrian bridge to illuminate cables and the centre spire.
The 55 LEDs replace existing incandescent lighting that wasn’t capable of being programmable or changing colours.
“Lighting bridges and other landmarks in different colours is being done in cities all over the world, so it is nice to be able to now light Esplanade Riel in the same way,” said Darren Burmey, bridge planning and operations engineer.
“Without this upgrade, it wasn’t feasible to change the colour of the bridge lights in an easy to manage way.”
City council has yet to finalize a formal lighting program for the bridge, which may eventually be used to mark special occasions and events. Until then, the bridge will display a 10-minute light show at the top of every hour, on the hour, from dusk until midnight, starting tonight.
The new lighting will be displayed every hour, on the hour, for 10 minutes from dusk until midnight. (CITY OF WINNIPEG / HANDOUT)
