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The Dufferin Street bridges are two inter-connected vehicular bridges in
From June 2013 the bridges have been closed to vehicular traffic. In November 2013-early 2014, the north bridge superstructure were replaced by three temporary bridges - two for traffic, and a third for pedestrians. The temporary bridges were opened in 2014 and are still used as of September 11, 2021.
Toronto tried deciding the type of bridge that will span over the tracks, but the decision was canceled as of September 11, 2021. The four types were:
* Steel plate box girder
* Hung arch
* Cable stay
* Concrete box girder
File:Dufferin Street Truss Bridge.jpg, View of Dufferin Street bridge showing deterioration.
File:Dufferin_Gates_-_South.jpg, Looking north from Dufferin Gate with overpass in foreground and truss bridge in background
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada. The bridges carry Dufferin Street
Dufferin Street is a major north–south street in Toronto, Vaughan and King, Ontario, Canada. It is a concession road, two concessions (4 km) west of Yonge Street. The street starts at Exhibition Place, continues north to Toronto's northe ...
over a railway corridor and the Gardiner Expressway to Exhibition Place
Exhibition Place is a publicly owned mixed-use district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located by the shoreline of Lake Ontario, just west of downtown. The site includes exhibit, trade, and banquet centres, theatre and music buildings, monuments ...
. The bridges closed to vehicular traffic in 2013. Temporary structures were built in 2013-2014 to allow a resumption of traffic in early 2014. As of March 2019 the spans over the Gardiner Expressway remain in place and the bailey bridges replacing the older outer pedestrian bridges of the northern span with the inner vehicular steel plate box girder bridge still in place.
North span
The truss bridge is a steeltruss bridge
A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...
, built from 1911 to 1912 to cross over railway tracks south of Springhurst Avenue. Four tracks pass under the bridge. A 2013 engineering study determined that the bridge was unsafe and not viable to be repaired. However, in 2014, Bailey bridges
A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the British for military use during the Second World War and saw extensive use by British, Canadian and American military engineering units. ...
were added for pedestrian traffic on the east and west sides, while the inner steel plate box girder bridge for vehicular traffic remains in place.
South span
The south span is a concrete overpass built in 1958 after demolition of the old Dufferin Gate to allow for clearance for the Gardiner Expressway below.Deterioration and replacement
After a report from external inspections conducted in 2007 the city decided to replace both spans with a single span: * 1911 steel plate girder bridge over rail corridor is structurally unsafe for vehicular traffic * lack space below to expanded rail corridor * need to provide space for future LRT corridor to the south end of the bridge * 1958 concrete bridge over Gardiner Expressway needs maintenance to keep it structurally safe * eliminate the existing gap between the two existing bridges spans
From June 2013 the bridges have been closed to vehicular traffic. In November 2013-early 2014, the north bridge superstructure were replaced by three temporary bridges - two for traffic, and a third for pedestrians. The temporary bridges were opened in 2014 and are still used as of September 11, 2021.
Toronto tried deciding the type of bridge that will span over the tracks, but the decision was canceled as of September 11, 2021. The four types were:
* Steel plate box girder
* Hung arch
* Cable stay
* Concrete box girder
Gallery
References
{{Streets in Toronto Bridges in Toronto Road bridges in Ontario Bridges completed in 1912 1912 establishments in Ontario