Thursday, February 21, 2019

Looking West

If you look at the right side of this pic you can see the Bookmark that I showed you yesterday and its location right beside this bridge which is called the Prince Edward Viaduct and which connects Danforth Ave in the east to Bloor St on the other side of the Don Valley in the west. The Viaduct opened in 1918 and is 494 metres long (1,620 ft) and 40 metres (131 ft) above the valley. It is a double decker bridge with the subway running below the roadway and has 5 lanes of traffic and also has bicycle lanes as you can see. In 2003 the metal structure that you can see above the railings was installed in an effort to halt the many suicides that took place here. This structure is called the Luminous Veil and has hundreds of rods that form a screen and at night is lit by changing colours of LED lights. It has been a success in its role as a safety barrier. I'll show you the view from the bridge tomorrow.

10 comments:

Sharon said...

That Luminous Veil is an interesting idea and I'm glad to hear it's been a success. I love seeing those tall buildings in the background.

PerthDailyPhoto said...

Gosh how sad to think that anyone could be that unhappy they'd jump! Glad the safety barrier is there. It's a really impressive structure Pat ✨

Annsterw said...

Very interesting facts. Glad the veil helps alleviate the jumpers at that location. More than anything I like the sign offering help at the distress center so they can hopefully talk to someone that can direct them for help!

eileeninmd said...

Hello,

I am glad they took precautions to prevent more suicides. I would think it looks pretty at night with the lights. Great view of the skyline. Enjoy your day, have a great weekend ahead!

William Kendall said...

I've seen that one from below, but never on top.

Andy said...

The Viaduct is an amazing structure. Having the lower deck installed saved the TTC a few million $$$ when the subway was built.

Bill said...

Glad they put in safety barriers to prevent suicides. I bet it looks nice at night with the different coloured LED lights.

Revrunner said...

Gosh! I would think so.

Kay said...

It's sad that bridges are so attractive for suicides. The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco was 80 years old (in 2017) before they finally began a barrier...after literally hundreds of fatal leaps from it.

jennyfreckles said...

Sad that a barrier is needed but it's nice they made it into a pretty feature with the lights.