High Level Bridge (Edmonton)

High Level Bridge (Edmonton)

The High Level Bridge, opened in 1913, spans the North Saskatchewan River in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Located next to the Alberta Legislature Building, the bridge linked the separate communities of Edmonton and Strathcona, which became one city in 1912. It was designed from the outset to accommodate rail, streetcar, automobile and pedestrian traffic. The bridge was designated a Municipal Historic Resource in 1995. Trucks are prohibited on the bridge due to the low clearance of 3.2 metres (10 ft 6 in) and substandard lane width. Currently street traffic is one-way southbound. At the north end of the bridge 109 Street becomes the left lane, and 110 Street becomes the right lane. The next bridge downstream, the Walterdale Bridge, is a two-lane bridge with one-way northbound traffic into the downtown.

The Canadian Pacific Railway, responsible for the design of the bridge, ceased rail operations over the span in 1989. The upper deck contains only one track now, which is currently used only by the High Level Bridge Streetcar, a historic streetcar route that travels from the Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum, just north of the Strathcona Farmers Market, in Old Strathcona, to Jasper Plaza south of Jasper Avenue, between 109 Street and 110 Street, in downtown, with three intermediate stops.

In 1980 the "Great Divide Waterfall" by artist Peter Lewis was added to the structure for Alberta's 75th Anniversary. The man-made waterfall dropped 64 m (210 ft) from the top of the bridge, (7 m higher than Niagara Falls,) into the North Saskatchewan River at a rate of 50,000 litres per minute. It operated during holiday weekends in the summer months until 2009 when it was shut off after consultation with Environment Canada.

Extensive repairs and the addition and widening of pedestrian sidewalks were completed in 1994–95. The original lead paint on the bridge was carefully removed, and over 100,000 litres of paint were used to recoat the girders.

The Edmonton-area Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer uses a rivet hammer purportedly used in the bridge's construction as part of its ceremony.

In June 2009 the electrical wires supporting trolley bus operation on 109 Street were removed as part of the City of Edmonton's plan to retire trolley buses from service.

Every year at the end of October (Breast Cancer Awareness Month), CHBN-FM (91.7 The Bounce) strings bras across the bridge for breast cancer awareness and research donation.