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Veterans Memorial Bridge tour
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Cuyahoga County is once again opening the underside of the Veterans Memorial Bridge and subway for one day in June.
The public will be able to walk the century-old rail lines and take in unique views of the Cuyahoga River, Lake Erie and downtown Cleveland from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 21. It’s part of Cleveland History Days celebrations, which run from June 19 – 29.
Entrance will be from the east side of the bridge this year, near Superior Hill Park and the Waterfront Line’s Settlers Landing Station. More detailed parking instructions are expected to be updated on the county’s website prior to the event.
Admission to the one-day event is free, but all visitors are required to sign a safety waiver that will be available online. Minors must be accompanied by an adult.
“These tours offer a rare opportunity to experience the history and potential of this iconic structure up close,” the county’s Senior Advisor for Transportation Annie Pease said in a news release. “As we plan for a more connected, accessible future in Cuyahoga County, public engagement like this is essential to shaping what comes next.”
The county and Executive Chris Ronayne have advocated to reopen the streetcar level of the Veterans Memorial Bridge, also known as the Detroit-Superior Bridge because it connects Detroit and Superior avenues. Streetcar service was discontinued in 1954, but Ronayne has talked of converting it into a “park in the sky” with a combined pedestrian and bike connector trail between Ohio City and downtown.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $7 million in funding last year to help pay for a feasibility study and prepare an engineering plan for what it might take to reopen the bridge’s 3,100-foot-long lower deck and what it might look like. That work began in December, Pease said.
The feasibility study is meant to update initial plans for repurposing the bridge that were laid out in a 2013 study, taking into account new projects and development around the bridge since then. But the core vision for the park and pedestrian space remains, Pease said.
The feasibility study is due by the end of the year and will set the framework for new engineering designs of what the streetcar level might look like. The design phase could last a couple of years, Pease said.
The county has not yet considered what it could cost to bring the vision to life or how it might pay for it. Pease said it will likely involve grant funding.
The one-day event won’t be the only opportunity to explore the Veterans Memorial Bridge this summer.
The Historic Gateway Neighborhood Corporation is also hosting guided walks through the streetcar as part of its Take a Hike series. Participants will learn about the history of the bridge and its surroundings, and special visitors will tell stories of the city’s past, according to the website.
Tours will be available every Friday at noon, from June 6 through Sept. 26. Unlike other Take a Hike tours, the bridge tour requires advance reservation at takeahikecle.com.
To learn more about the county’s “Rediscover Veterans Memorial Bridge” initiative and tour events, visit cuyahogacounty.gov/veterans-memorial-bridge.
