Troubled Bridge III
More pictures from the removal of the railway span of Victoria’s Johnson Street Bridge a few weeks ago. These pictures are taken on three different days. Included is a picture of the smaller crane barge being towed towards the harbour through the Strait of Juan de Fuca – I happened to be taking pictures on the beach in front of Beacon Hill Park when it went past.
Also shown are general and detail views of the bridge and cranes as they get ready to lift the rail span, making the final cut to a girder while holding the whole thing steady. Not long after these pictures were taken the span was lifted and barged over to Point Hope Shipyards where it will be cut up for recycling. Also included are a few of shots of the the rail span is awaiting dismemberment in its current resting place, taken a few weeks ago.
You can find my other posts about the bridge here.
Large views of the photos in the gallery below can be seen by clicking on any of the images and using the navigation arrows at the sides.
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- Crane being towed towards Victoria Harbour Feb 19, 2012, monochrome
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- Crane being towed towards Victoria Harbour 19/2/2012
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- Bridge and crane from Store Street looking west
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- Crane details from west end of bridge
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- Crane details, 24/2/2012
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- Girder details, monochrome
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- Work detail, monochrome
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- Making the final cut, 24/2/2012, monochrome
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- Rail span at Point Hope Shipyard 3/3/2012 from east end Bay Street Bridge. Crane in distance left at Johnson St. Brige.
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- Rail span at Point Hope Shipyard closeup from Harbour Road, mono
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- Rail span at Point Hope Shipyard closeup from Harbour Road, mono
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- Rail span at Point Hope Shipyard closeup from Harbour Road, mono
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Canon EOS 5Dii, Canon 50mm/f1.4 lens, various ISO and exposures
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burnt embers 
It’s really hard to get your head around the scale of this project. Your documentation goes a long ways, my friend, I really enjoy this series!
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Hi Toad – the red crane is enormous, the biggest floating crane on the west coast as I understand it. Its a big job and I guess I should go have another look, camera in hand, pretty soon. Also, now that I have a wide angle lens, that could be fun way to take some of the remaining superstructure.
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I would LOVE to see those images, my friend!
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I really like how you are documenting this event. The photos, both B&W and the color are wonderful! Have you seen anyone else photographing the removal of the bridge?
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Thanks for your great comments.
The day of the removal there were many people snapping away, and one TV camera. A few serious looking photographers, or at least people with pretty serious looking gear, were there. It was hard to get access to the best vantage points on the walkway over the traffic bridge. I should have taken a picture of that!
Its a big deal in Victoria, this is/was a major landmark and its removal has been controversial and political. I am documenting it because it has been a large part of my surroundings for decades, and because it is a photogenic heritage structure that is fun to take pictures of.
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Lovely images – great chronicle of the moment. I especially love the Girder Details – amazing composition. The black and white images all have such a lovely contrast. I like that you included color as well.
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Thanks Ryan – Girder details is a crop of a part that caught my eye – I could not get any closer so shot with the intention of cropping.
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So very moody on the days the bridge was taking leave…
Great documentation.
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Thanks Karen – its sad to see this going on, it was a nice bridge.
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great post
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Thanks!
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