A series of bridges extending the PATH system south of Union Station will officially open this month, linking the Air Canada Centre to the waterfront at Queens Quay.

The three new bridge components will allow Torontonians to walk from Yonge-Dundas Square all the way to RBC WaterPark Place without having to set foot outdoors. The bridges allow pedestrians to walk out of the Air Canada Centre, underneath the Gardiner, into 90 Harbour St. and across Harbour St., and exit at RBC WaterPark Place.

The idea for the new walkway stemmed from lease negotiations between RBC and landlord Oxford Properties Group, who wanted a PATH connection between Union Station and the building.

The bridges had to be pre-assembled completely and brought into place because of the traffic moving underneath, said John White, principal of WZMH Architects, in a video about the installation.

“They were brought over intact usually at midnight on a Saturday night,” he said.

Two of the bridges were lifted into place using a crane, while the third bridge — the one underneath the Gardiner — had to be installed using a specialized truck that kept it level and was hydraulically lifted up since the highway above wouldn’t allow the use of a crane.

This bridge was put onto a series of tracks, which allow it to be moved east and west when the Gardiner is scheduled for repairs.

The transparent bridges, made entirely of glass, are meant to bring in the quality of light found at the waterfront that is “unmatched in the downtown core,” says White. “There’s kind of a sparkle, kind of a reflectivity.”

“There’s a level of light that’s so much more intense,” he says. “And we really wanted to bring that into the experience of coming down to the waterfront.”

Correction - January 14, 2015: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said the bridges will extend the PATH north of Union Station.

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