Bridges Home • About the Bridges • Why They're Threatened • Sixth Street Viaduct • N. Spring Street Viaduct • Resources

WHY THEY'RE THREATENED

First Street Viaduct. Photo by Kevin Break

The City of Los Angeles’ Bureau of Engineering (BOE) has an ongoing Bridge Improvement Program to overhaul city-owned bridges. Since its inception, the program has set its sights on the historic Los Angeles River spans.

With the First Street Viaduct widening project nearly complete as part of the Metro Gold Line expansion, environmental review has been underway for “improvement” projects at the Riverside, North Spring Street, and Sixth Street crossings, posing major threats to historic resources up and down the river corridor.

Despite the historical and contextual links between them, until now there has been little consideration of the program’s cumulative impacts on this unique ensemble of monumental bridges.