the Route 2 (the Trans-Canada Highway) bypass project around the city. In 1968, construction of the Mactaquac Dam 15 kilometres upriver from Fredericton closed the river to navigable traffic above the city. That same year saw residents and government officials begin to discuss a replacement for the Carleton Street Bridge, now that the costly navigation requirement was eliminated. By the early 1970s, the provincial government (the project's primary proponent) settled on an ambitious traffic planning scheme which would see a single new low profile bridge constructed from the foot of Westmorland Street with appropriate collector roads along the waterfront floodplain. This plan elicited various protests by residents and the so-called Citizens' Bridge Committee was founded in May 1974 to urge the provincial government to find an alternative location for the proposed bridge. Issues cited included the location, size and cost of the crossing. The Westmorland Street location was controversial as it and the collector roads would have a major impact on the city's historic riverfront. The Fredericton chapter of the New Brunswick Conservation Council and the Fredericton Heritage Trust were among several organizations which also sought changes to the proposed bridge location and design. The specific objectives of the Citizens' Bridge Committee included: citizen participation in the decisions relating to bridge and highway construction, to develop public awareness of the problem, to coordinate public input, and to articulate community concerns. The committee sought expert opinions on bridge and highway matters, made news releases, provided speakers to groups and information to the general public, and represented public concerns before governments and government agencies. The committee dissolved in September 1975, having decided its members had presented their views to the public and the project had been given a lower priority by the government of Premier Richard Hatfield. In January 1977 a new committee was formed, called Save Our City, in response to renewed efforts by the provincial government to proceed with a replacement for the Carleton Bridge. This committee included representatives from the York-Sunbury Historical Society, the New Brunswick Conservation Council, the University Women's Club, Fredericton Heritage Trust, the Community Planning Association of Canada, various neighbourhood associations, and some members from the Citizen's Bridge Committee. The aim of this new committee was to "open the eyes and ears of civil servants and politicians who have persisted in ignoring the substantial opposition to the Westmorland Street bridge proposal." Construction of the Westmorland Street