A huge thanks to Bitzer for sharing this virtual cache credit with us!
When you arrive at this location you will see an interesting piece of art in the yard nearby. This is actually a piece of the historic Traffic Bridge! We have no idea how this piece came to be located here but we thought it was neat! Its great to see it repurposed as a piece of interest here.
The original Traffic Bridge, unofficially known as the Victoria bridge, was opened October 10th, 1907. This bridge was created to replace an unreliable ferry system and it's creation was a condition of the community of Nutana almagamating with the communities of Saskatoon & Riversdale to become the city of Saskatoon. The Traffic Bridge was specifically designed for foot and vehicle traffic. Up until that point the only other way to cross the river was the unreliable ferry or the railway bridge, which for foot traffic was anything but safe.
The Traffic Bridge was built at the cost of $106,000 and was paid for by the provincial government. The Traffic Bridge consisted of five Parker through truss spans with riveted connections. The bridge was composed of two seven panel spans of 175 feet (56m), one at each end of the bridge, and each of the three central spans contained eight panels forming spans that were 200 feet (64m) long. The substructure includes concrete abutments and piers. The single cantilevered sidewalk was technically not original to the bridge, but the bridge hardly was opened to traffic and the need for a sidewalk was realized, so the sidewalk was added soon after. The substructure of the bridge was built by a well-known Winnipeg contractor, John D. Gunn and Sons Ltd. The truss bridge superstructure was fabricated by the Canadian Bridge Company of Walkerville, Ontario. The on-site superstructure contractor was the McDiarmid Company of Winnipeg. The bridge was the first large steel bridge placed on a concrete substructure in the province, and it also marked the beginning of mandated concrete quality control testing in public works construction in the province. Prior to this time, contractors used whatever concrete mix they wished, and the quality could vary considerably.
On June 7, 1908, the Traffic Bridge was the site of Saskatoon's only "maritime disaster", when the steamship S.S. City of Medicine Hat crashed broadside into one of its concrete piers and sank. All people on board were able to swim ashore. This accident marked the end of steamboat traffic on the river. The 130-foot steamship, which was powered by a single boiler, sat at the bottom of the river for 98 years, undiscovered. An anchor presumed to be the S.S. City of Medicine Hat's was located in August 2006 by divers training just downstream, near the Broadway Bridge. This discovery led to a full-scale, five-day underwater excavation, which was conducted from September 8 to 12, 2008. A number of artifacts were uncovered from the water. A documentary film, titled "The Last Steamship: The Search for the SS City of Medicine Hat" was created in 2010 about the wreck and the search. More artifacts were unearthed in 2012 underneath Rotary Park, where the river used to run until it was covered by landfill to create the park in the 1960s.
From 1913-1933, streetcars of the Saskatoon Municipal Railway crossed this bridge. Two different times a streetcar derailed when it slid off ice-covered tracks trying to turn onto the bridge. The road, now Saskatchewan Crescent, was difficult for transportation to maneuver. Streetcar lines were eventually rerouted to the Broadway Bridge in 1933.
In 1961 the southern end of the bridge was raised to decrease the steep rise up the short hill on Victoria Avenue. This allowed for traffic to pass under the south end of the bridge on what is now Saskatchewan Crescent which improved traffic flow. At this point the Traffic Bridge averaged 10,000 vehicles a day.
Beginning in the 1980s, the bridge started to show its age and needed to be closed periodically for refurbishment. Some adjustments were also made to widen the roadway, as many modern motorists were experiencing difficulty crossing the bridge. It was also closed for extended periods of time in the early 1990s when City of Saskatoon work crews damaged the bridge twice by driving over the bridge with vehicles too heavy or too large for the bridge specifications.
On September 6, 2005, the City of Saskatoon closed the bridge for inspection, in preparation for planned upgrades to the roadway on the north side of the river. On November 2, the bridge was closed indefinitely to vehicular traffic upon completion of the inspection, due to corrosion and other factors. The bridge was re-opened on September 8, 2006, following repairs that cost $500,000.
In the summer of 2007 the bridge's arches were equipped with several series of decorative LED lights. They included a programmable controller that made the lights change colour and move in different patterns. However, the lights proved controversial. Not only did they seem out of place with the historical character of the brige, they cost the city $462,000, which was almost twice the city's original estimate. They also broke down frequently, fueling further complaints from the public about their high price tag. These lights proved to be the death knell of the bridge. Joggers regularly running across the bridge caused the light strands to kind of disconnect, from the structure shaking. That alerted the engineers to the fact there might be a serious problem with the aged structure.
On August 24, 2010, the City of Saskatoon closed the original Traffic Bridge to vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians following a preliminary inspection which could not conclude that the bridge was safe. The bridge's closure initially led to traffic tie-ups leading into the downtown, which were feared to be long-term if the bridge was not repaired or replaced.
A decision was made by City Council to replace the existing bridge with a modern steel truss bridge with multi-use pathways on either side. On January 10, 2016, thousands of people gathered on the Broadway Bridge to watch the two south spans of the old bridge come down with explosives. On February 7, 2016, a portion of the far north span of the old bridge was also demolished with explosives.
Timelapse of new bridge construction
The new Traffic Bridge opened on October 2, 2018. It looks similar to the old bridge, but is slightly wider and taller to accommodate wider traffic lanes, wider pathways on both sides, and overhead clearance for emergency vehicles.
We aren't sure how this yard came to have a piece of the historic Traffic Bridge as art in their yard. If anyone knows or happens to find out please let us know in your log. We love this type of quirky, yet meaningful yard display!
To log this cache as Found please send us the answer the two following questions:
1. When you are facing this house, is the piece of Traffic Bridge in this yard to the left or right of the path leading to their door?
2. Looking two houses east of this spot, what colour is the door of that house?
Both questions can be answered without leaving public property. Do not post your answers in your cache log.
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.