Cyclists who bike the Don River trail in Toronto will be familiar with the forlorn sight of this abandoned, fenced-off bridge that crosses the river just south of Eastern Ave.
Made of steel and concrete, the bridge is 45 metres long and 19 metres wide. The Old Eastern Avenue Bridge, as it is called, was built in 1933. It replaced a bridge that had been wrecked during the spring thaw of that year.
The bridge once joined Sunlight Park Road, which meets Eastern Ave. about 300 metres to the east. It was closed in 1964 after the construction of a new bridge just to the north removed the need for the old one. Eastern Ave. had been rerouted to the new bridge at that time because of the construction of the Gardiner Expressway–to–Bloor St. section of the Don Valley Parkway.
Because it was cheaper to leave the bridge in place than to remove it, the bridge was left intact. It is still periodically inspected by the city.
↑ The concrete arch that runs beside the old bridge on its north side supports a large gas main. This arch was built for Consumers’ Gas (later Enbridge) in 1930. It is also 45 metres long and is not a pedestrian bridge.
While I was near the bridge, I saw what I thought was a groundhog. I hope the groundhog doesn’t rely on the river for water. The water is none too clean…
↑ Looking south along the Don River. The Don Valley Parkway is on the left.
↑ The bridge ends at the Don Valley Parkway now.
↑ Looking north. The concrete arch carrying the gas main can be seen.
All photos by Rob Tilley.
Sources:
Bateman, Chris – “A Brief History of Crossing the Don River”
Brown, Edward – “Ask Torontoist: A Grey Bridge To Nowhere”
HistoricBridges.org – "Eastern Avenue Bridge"
Wikipedia – "Old Eastern Avenue Bridge"
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