The replacement for the 1939 Santa Monica Pier Bridge that awkwardly carries pedestrians, cars, and cyclists from Colorado Avenue to the pier is finally getting a big makeover, but it has some tight deadlines to meet. The environmental impact study currently going on—studying four options for making the bridge seismically safer and handicap-accessible—will wrap by the end of the year, then there'll be another year devoted to hiring a contractor and final engineering, and then construction will begin (hopefully!) in 2016 and wrap up the following year, according to the Lookout.
In the interim, SaMo is limiting vehicle access to the bridge and providing a wider pedestrian walkway on the bridge's north side by shifting vehicle lanes to the south. The new bridge will likely have more room for pedestrians, but could run along a more circuitous route (see rendering of one option above) so that the bridge's grade isn't so steep and wheelchairs don't careen into the video arcade.
· Downtown Santa Monica Gets Major Overhaul [Lookout]
· Four Kind-Of-Wacky Ideas For A New Santa Monica Pier Bridge [Curbed LA]
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