A Bridge in Disassembly - Vancouver, BC

The Port Mann Bridge that connects the Lower Mainland of Vancouver with the Fraser Valley is getting the slow demolition treatment.





Port Mann Bridge #1 in bright orange, March 2014, by DG Hudson

The old bridge on the right is being disassembled. The exposed concrete support now shows under the orange and yellow equipment in the image, since one large section has been removed. Construction on the original Port Mann Bridge began in 1957, was completed in 1964, and closed in 2012. The new bridge has greater capacity, and a more efficient design including an HOV lane. Tolls for most cars are $3 each way. Free old bridge to tolled new bridge, we will go from six lanes to ten when all are completed. There are still  bridge construction 'holdups' at various times, a part of life in the big city.



Pt Mann Bridge #1 (Orange girders) 2014, and cabled Pt. Mann Bridge #2, DG Hudson

  



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The upright supports on the right of the image are loosely strung with cables and form part of the equipment used in stripping the road surface and removing the orange girders. Not sure if any of the bridge pieces are being recycled for another use. Perhaps that explains the slow demo, aside from the reality of those guys working over deep water, the Fraser River.

 

 

Bridge Cables overlap the old Port Mann bridge and the supports by DG Hudson

 

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Shown below is a section of the old bridge with the supports which are assisting in the dismantling or disassembly of the roadway and the arching orange girders. Orange made the bridge more visible on those gray wet days that we get in Vancouver, aka rainforest country.

Port Mann Bridge Disassembly Closeup 2014, Vancouver, by DG Hudson

It's interesting to watch the process when something is being dismantled, as opposed to being demolished. Bridges spanning large rivers or small water sources are one of the things I like about both Vancouver and Paris.

Happy St. Patrick's Day, if you indulge. And watch out for the greenies. . .

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Are you a fan of bridges? Have you ever seen a bridge disassembled?
Please share in the comments and thanks for dropping by!
Are you in the A to Z Challenge yet? If you are, I'll see you there.

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This post is an update of previous posts. Links to those are:

Port Mann Bridge - 1st Update
http://dghudson-rainwriting.blogspot.ca/2013/02/pt-mann-bridge-update-vancouver-views.html

Bridge Across Fraser River and Crepes
http://dghudson.blogspot.ca/2012/06/bridge-across-fraser-river-and-crepes.html

History of the Port Mann Bridge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Mann_Bridge 

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Crowd Scenes in France

How many people equal a 'crowd'?  At least, these are all benign.


At Versailles. . .
The tours have arrived.





Palace of Versailles Gilded Front Gate, France by DG Hudson

 
Sometimes you can't get away from the crowds, as seen here on tour at Versailles. This is the front walkway, intended to slow traffic to a respectable pace. Imagine horse-drawn carriages clopping over those square cobblestones to be greeted and assessed by the guards at the entry gate. The gilding on the gates had been recently applied when this photo was taken. In Louis XIV's day,  the crowds would have been courtiers, suppliers, and foreign visitors to the court but now, the crowd is composed of tourists and their tour leaders.

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At the Louvre

A battle weary crowd can be dangerous or humble. Napoleon is centred in the scene as the primary figure in the painting below. It's impressive when you see it up close. Painting famous battles was one way of commemorating the event in history.




Napoleon on the Battlefield at Eylau, by Antoine-Jean Gros, photo LM-DGH




Napoleon on the Battlefield at Eylau, February 9, 1807

Painted by Baron Antoine-Jean GROS; The scene is intended to show the compassion of Napoleon the day after a battle at Eylau, in eastern Prussia. The smoke in the background and the pile of corpses in the foreground are both indicators of what came before this scene. The Louvre allows no-flash photography, so I took advantage of that to capture this painting and a few more. . .

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A Parade in Paris
On the Champs-Élysées

Paris, French Parade on the Champs-Élysées, by DG Hudson

 
On the famed Champs-Élysées, we saw a parade in progress, but not in the streets. On the wide sidewalks of the Champs, there was ample room for the parade and the onlookers. Traffic was still king in the streets. This parade was well-ordered and nattily dressed.

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Do you like parades? Do you feel safe in a crowd at public events? Do you think parades are done much less often now than in the past?

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Thanks for dropping by! Please leave a comment to let me know you were here.

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