The Pont de Bercy (English: Bridge of Bercy) is a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

over the

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributarie ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. It links the

12th 12 (twelve) is the natural number following 11 and preceding 13. Twelve is a superior highly composite number, divisible by 2, 3, 4, and 6. It is the number of years required for an orbital period of Jupiter. It is central to many systems ...

and

13th arrondissement of Paris The 13th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''treizième''. The arrondissement, called Gobelins, is situated ...

by extending the Boulevard de Bercy and Boulevard Vincent-Auriol. In addition to the roadway, the bridge also carries Line 6 of the

Paris Métro The Paris Métro (french: Métro de Paris ; short for Métropolitain ) is a rapid transit system in the Paris metropolitan area, France. A symbol of the Paris, city, it is known for its density within the capital's territorial limits, uniform ar ...

, between Quai de la Gare station and

Bercy Bercy () is a neighbourhood in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, the city's 47th administrative neighbourhood. History Some of the oldest vestiges of human occupation in Paris were found on the territory of Bercy, dating from the late Neolithic ...

station.

History

The Pont de Bercy was built at the site of another bridge, a

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

opened in 1832 to replace a ferry that had become overcrowded and thus exceeded its tonnage limit. The former bridge had a toll: one sou (5

centimes Centime (from la, centesimus) is French language, French for "Cent (currency), cent", and is used in English as the name of the fraction currency in several Francophone countries (including Switzerland, Algeria, Belgium, Morocco and France). ...

) for

pedestrians A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or Road surface, pavement, but this was not the case historically. The meaning of pedestrian is dis ...

, 3 sous per two-wheeled

cabriolet A convertible or cabriolet () is a passenger car that can be driven with or without a roof in place. The methods of retracting and storing the roof vary among eras and manufacturers. A convertible car's design allows an open-air driving expe ...

(including persons transported) and 5 sous per car with four wheels attached to two horses. Between 1863 and 1864, it was replaced by a stronger stone structure. In 1904, the bridge was enlarged by 5.5 metres (18 feet) to support Line 6 of the

. In 1986, the decision was made to further enlarge the bridge in order to create three additional lanes for traffic. The winning bid proposed doubling the bridge by adding extensions perfectly symmetrical to the underground

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

. Although identical in all respects to the original, the new addition is built of reinforced concrete and covered with a stone dressing. The work started in 1989 and the bridge was opened in 1992, effectively adding 16 metres (50 feet) for a total width of 35 metres (130 feet).

In Popular Culture

The Pont de Bercy is referenced in the well-known song " Sous le ciel de Paris" (Under the sky of Paris) sung by

Yves Montand Ivo Livi (), better known as Yves Montand (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), was an Italian-French actor and singer. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Monsummano Terme, Italy, to Giovanni Livi, a broom manufacturer, Ivo held strong ...

Edith Piaf Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...

and many others. The song mentions a philosopher sitting on the bridge, and two musicians playing there for a few onlookers.

History

In Popular Culture

See also