South Park Bridge - Salvaging parts from the old bridgeParts of the old bridge will live onSouth Park Bridge leaf removalRemoval of the South Park Bridge's north leaf took place on Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010. The south leaf of the bridge was removed on Tuesday, Aug. 31.
Each span weighed 221 tons. Some of the bridge span metal will be recycled, and some will be used on the new bridge. Removal of the first span took 7 hours as the bridge beams were laminated and the acetylene torch would lose its 'cut' line for each layer. Removal of the second span or 'leaf' only took a couple of hours as they used a magnesium torch fueled by pure oxygen which burns at 4200 degrees. The process was that the lower supports were cut at the same time to maintain balance. Then the upper supports were cut and the leaf was lowered to a barge, where it was moved to another site for salvage and recycling. County will salvage gears, engine, and other elementsThe old South Park Bridge will soon be gone, but it won't be forgotten—especially the parts that will reappear in new settings once the new bridge is built (learn more about the funding effort for the new bridge). The demolition plan calls for many parts of the old bridge to be salvaged and reused, including the drawbridge gears, which will be incorporated into the pedestrian rails of the new bridge. Photos of some of the materials that will be salvaged
Salvaged bridge grating and teeth will be used on the new bridge and also on a City of Seattle Solid Waste Transfer Station project.
(Enlarged view, 451KB .pdf) |
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Salvaged rail posts and decorative rail panels. Rail panels will become part of the new bridge rail and the posts will be used as bollards throughout the project site.
(Enlarged view, 360KB .pdf) |
The iron railing on the old bridge was decorated with fabric streamers during the last hours before the bridge closed. |
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Sections of the old railing will be incorporated into the new one. |
The red brick road lies where the new bridge will be built... |
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...but the bricks will be used on pedestrian pathways through the new landscaping. |
Gears that formerly lifted the drawbridge... |
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...will be focal points on the new bridge railing. | List of items to be salvagedHere's a list of items to be salvaged and their planned reuse, mostly in the new structure or its surrounding amenities:
| Item to be salvaged |
Quantity |
Planned reuse |
| Concrete light pole |
4 |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Concrete balustrade |
4 |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Gear, shaft, frame set |
1 |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Transverse truss elements |
312 linear ft. |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Roadway bricks* |
4174 square ft. |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Steel deck grating |
965 square ft. |
Landscape architecture feature |
| Individual gears |
41 |
Pedestrian railing |
| Iron railing panels |
96 |
Pedestrian railing |
| Control console |
1 |
Historic artifact |
| Rolling girder segment |
4 |
Art feature |
| Guide track |
4 |
Art feature |
| Generator engine |
1 |
King County's use | *The bricks will come from the "red brick road" beside the old bridge, which will be replaced by the new bridge.
Information on the South Park Bridge website is available to people with disabilities in alternate formats upon request by calling 206-263-6482 or 711 for the TTY relay service.  = External link
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