Michigan Central Railway Bridge

Not to be confused with the bridge this replaced, the Niagara Cantilever Bridge, sometimes called the Michigan Central Railway Cantilever Bridge.
Michigan Central Railway Bridge

Bridge in Spring 2009
Crosses Niagara River
Locale Niagara Falls, Ontario and Niagara Falls, New York
Maintained by Canadian Pacific Railway
Characteristics
Design Deck arch bridge
History
Opened 1925
Statistics
Daily traffic none
Toll N/A

The Michigan Central Railway Bridge is a steel arch bridge spanning the Niagara Gorge between Niagara Falls, Ontario and Niagara Falls, New York. The bridge was designed by William Perry Taylor, Chief Engineer J.L. Delming and consulting Norwegian-born engineer Olaf Hoff.[1]

Satellite view of the bridge, marked with an "A".

Construction on the bridge began in 1924, and the bridge opened in 1925. This bridge replaced the Niagara Cantilever Bridge that crossed in the same area from 1883 to 1925. The bridge is owned by Canadian Pacific Railway, which purchased the single track structure in 1990. The bridge no longer carries train traffic as the tracks on the bridge and on the Canadian side have been removed. The tracks leading to the bridge end at Robert Moses State Parkway remain in certain sections.

There is currently a wall across the centre of the bridge that is topped with barbed wire to prevent people from walking across it. Additional barrier and barbed wire is located on the sides to prevent climbing on the steel arch sections. A wired fence blocks the east side (American) and another wall on the west side (in Canada). The Canadian corridor and bridge are owned by the City of Niagara Falls, Ontario and plans were to have had the bridge demolished by May 2012.[2] However, the bridge still stands today.

The bridge location is just upstream from the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge used by Maple Leaf Amtrak passenger trains.

References

  1. ↑ Bjork, Kenneth Saga In Steel And Concrete - Norwegian Engineers In America (Northfield, Minnesota: Norwegian-American Historical Association, 1947)
  2. ↑ http://www.niagarafrontier.com/bridges.html#b6

Coordinates: 43°06′31″N 79°03′30″W / 43.108546°N 79.058368°W / 43.108546; -79.058368

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