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Bridge Street Bridge

Bridgeport Bridge

   

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Bridge Documented: October 10, 2005 and July 20, 2012

Primary Photographer(s): Nathan Holth and Rick McOmber

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Key Facts

	Bridge Name	Facility Carried / Feature Intersected	Location	Structure Type	Construction Date and Builder/Engineer
	Bridge Street Bridge Bridgeport Bridge	Bridge Street Over Grand River	Kitchener: Waterloo Region, Ontario	Concrete Rainbow Through Arch, Fixed	1934 By Builder/Contractor: Storms Contracting Company of Toronto, Ontario

Technical Facts

Rehabilitation Date	Main Span Length	Structure Length	Roadway Width	Main Spans
2009	82.3 Feet (25.1 Meters)	413.4 Feet (126 Meters)	35 Feet (10.7 Meters)	5

Kitchener has a couple of very long multi-span concrete bowstring through arch bridges, commonly called rainbow arch bridges over Grand River. Freeport Bridge is the other one in town. The Bridgeport Bridge is the shorter and newer of the two with five spans and a 1934 construction date. It is no less impressive however, and the structure retains a great deal of integrity. Plaques list the 1934 construction date as well as the designer and commission engineer for the bridge which was D. J. Emrey. It was built under a Suburban Roads Commission. The contractor for the bridge is listed as The Storms Contracting Company of Toronto, Ontario.

The bridge is the first at the location, and replaced a ferry crossing at the site, according to area resident Susan Bender. She provided the following history:

"This bridge was a wonderful addition to getting over the river when it was built and greatly added to the community. My mother told me that before the bridge was built, her family would take the trolley from Kitchener down to Bridgeport, then have to take a ferry over to the other side to go fishing and have picnics. When the bridge was built, it was a much easier crossing." -Susan Bender, August 2009

As of August, 2009, this bridge underwent a major rehabilitation. In addition to structural repairs, rehabilitation included placing modern lighting on the bridge with heritage style lighting that will better match the original style of lighting present on the bridge in the 1930s. The rehabilitation also added a cantilevered sidewalk to the southern side of the bridge. This new sidewalk included railings that replicated the design seen on the original sidewalk on the northern side of the bridge. Prior to rehabilitation, the overall condition of the bridge was good, although there was some minor spalling under the deck which has exposed some of the reinforcing rods in small isolated spots. The top side of the deck looked like it was redone with a new layer of concrete and new expansion joints as well in the fairly recent past.  Some sections of the arches looked like they were patched at some point as well.

Don Drews created a YouTube slide show of this bridge available here.

Information and Findings From Waterloo Region Heritage Bridge Inventory Waterloo Region Assigned Heritage Ratings: Overall Score: 64. (Heritage Bridge scores range from 50 up to generally 78) Listed in Top Ten Waterloo Region Heritage Bridge List. Rank: #8 View Heritage Bridge Inventory Data Sheets

Photos and Videos: Bridge Street Bridge

Available Photo Galleries and Videos

Click on a thumbnail or gallery name below to visit that particular photo gallery. If videos are available, click on a video name to view and/or download that particular video.

 

	2012 Bridge Photo-Documentation Original / Full Size Photos	A collection of overview and detail photos, taken after rehabilitation. For the best visual immersion and full detail, or for use as a desktop background, this gallery presents the photos for this bridge in the original digital camera resolution.
	2012 Bridge Photo-Documentation Mobile Optimized Gallery	A collection of overview and detail photos, taken after rehabilitation. View the photos for this bridge in a reduced size which is useful for mobile/smartphone users, modem (dial-up) users, or those who do not wish to wait for the longer download times of the full-size photos. Alternatively, view this photo gallery using a popup slideshow viewer (great for mobile users) by clicking the link below. Browse Gallery With Popup Viewer
	2005 Bridge Photo-Documentation	A collection of overview and detail photos, taken before rehabilitation. This photo gallery contains a combination of Original / Full Sized photos and Mobile/Smartphone Optimized (Reduced Size) photos. Alternatively, view this photo gallery using a popup slideshow viewer by clicking the link below. Browse Gallery With Popup Viewer

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