| Shakespeare Bridge | |
|---|---|
Shakespeare Bridge in 1956 |
|
| Carries | Franklin Avenue |
| Crosses | Ravine |
| Locale | Franklin Hills section of Los Angeles, California |
| Design | Open-spandrel reinforced concrete deck arch bridge |
| Total length | 260 feet |
| Width | 30 feet |
| Opened | 1926 -- rebuilt 1998 |
The Shakespeare Bridge in the Franklin Hills section of Los Angeles, California was built in 1926. It is made of concrete and decorated in a Gothic style. It was named after famous playwright William Shakespeare and was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #126 in 1974.
The bridge was rebuilt in 1998 after the Northridge earthquake due to concerns that the structure would not be stable in an earthquake. As part of the seismic retrofit, the deck, sidewalks, and railings were removed and reconstructed using reinforced concrete. The expansion joints were also removed, so the bridge is now a one-piece structural diagram built to transfer all seismic forces into the abutment walls at either end of the bridge. All of the rebuilding was done in an effort to preserving the historic appearance of the bridge.