Nova Scotia Buzz
If you have ever travelled across the country to Canada’s west coast, you may be familiar with the Lions Gate Bridge. The bridge connects Vancouver to its northern suburbs. If you were to watch a Vancouver Canucks game you would likely see it in the broadcast.
Just like Halifax’s MacDonald Bridge, the Lion’s Gate Bridge in Vancouver is a popular landmark in the city.
Construction of the bridge started on March 31, 1937 and the span opened on November 14, 1938, a whole 17 years before Halifax’s Angus L. MacDonald Bridge.
Each bridge is eerily similar, which makes sense because both were designed by Monsarrat and Pratley of Montreal. Remember The Big Lift? Well, the MacDonald Bridge was the second suspension bridge that had such work done to it. The Lions Gate Bridge was the first.
The people in Vancouver have one perk we in Halifax don’t, they have no tolls on their bridge. In Halifax we pay $1 per crossing or 80 cents with a MACPASS. The Lion’s Gate Bridge is about half a kilometer longer than the MacDonald, but similar in height at about 8 meters taller than the MacDonald Bridge.
Both bridges have three lanes of traffic with a reversing centre lane. In Halifax an average of 48,000 vehicles cross the bridge each day, where in Vancouver the number is more like 60,000 – 70,000.
Next time you’re in Vancouver, say hi to our sister bridge, The Lions Gate.
