Commonwealth Avenue Bridge

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Commonwealth Avenue Bridge
Commonwealth Avenue Bridge over Lake Burley Griffin, Canberra.jpg
Commonwealth Avenue Bridge over Lake Burley Griffin, with Parliament House, Canberra in the background
Coordinates 35°17′30″S149°07′37″E / 35.291712°S 149.127068°E / -35.291712; 149.127068
Carries Commonwealth Avenue
Crosses Lake Burley Griffin
Locale Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Begins Parkes (south end)
Ends City (north end)
Other name(s)Commonwealth Bridge
Owner National Capital Authority
Preceded byKings Avenue Bridge
Followed by Scrivener Dam
Characteristics
MaterialConcrete
Trough constructionSteel
Total length310 metres (1,017 ft)
Longest span73 metres (240 ft)
No. of spans5
Piers in water4
No. of lanes
  • 6 traffic (3 north / 3 southbound)
  • Shared footway / bicycle path
History
Designer Maunsell & Partners
Constructed by Hornibrook
Construction startMarch 1961 (1961-03)
OpenedNovember 1963 (1963-11)
Location
Commonwealth Avenue Bridge

The Commonwealth Avenue Bridge is two parallel box girder road bridges, made of pre-stressed concrete, that carry Commonwealth Avenue across Lake Burley Griffin, and connect Parkes and City in Canberra, Australia.

Contents

History

The current bridge is the fourth crossing over the Molonglo River. The first Commonwealth Avenue Bridge, completed 1916, was damaged in the 1922 flood. The second, using three Leychester-type trusses, was completed in 1924 and damaged in floods a year later. The third bridge, completed in 1927, was a modification of the 1924 bridge, by raising the bridge by one metre (three feet) and adding a fourth truss. [1] At that time, Molonglo River was not dammed to form Lake Burley Griffin. [2] Building on the plan developed by Walter Burley Griffin, in 1957 William Holford proposed to the Federal Government that the Molonglo be dammed near Yarralumla and that Canberra's 'two halves' should be joined via a lake. [3]

Construction of the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge began in March 1961 and the bridge was opened in November 1963. Concurrently, the Kings Avenue Bridge was opened in March 1962; and Scrivener Dam was completed in September 1963. Both bridges were built over a dry riverbed as Canberra was in the grip of drought. It took some time for the lake to fill; finally filled for the first time on 29 April 1964. [2]

Description

Designed by Maunsell & Partners and built by Hornibrook, the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge comprises five spans of continually pre-stressed concrete, totalling 310 metres (1,020 ft). The provide an entry and exit clover leaf layout, on the bridges southern approaches, operate structures were constructed totalling 49 metres (161 ft) each, in four approximately equal spans. [4] The main superstructure is of multi-web box section shape, continuous over the five spans, ranging from 56 to 73 metres (185 to 240 ft). The central piers, octagonal in shape, are carried on 2-metre (6 ft) diameter reinforced concrete cylinders. Each of the pre-cast concrete box girder sections are 3 metres (10 ft) each. [5] [6]

In 2019 a detailed analysis for the strengthening and widening of Commonwealth Avenue Bridge was presented in a business case for the project. In late 2020 the project was evaluated and accepted by Infrastructure Australia [7] and in January 2021, the Federal Government announced funding to renew the Bridge.

That project is unrelated to the ACT Government's plan to extend Canberra light rail network from Civic to Woden. [8] [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canberra</span> Capital city of Australia

Canberra is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest Australian city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory at the northern tip of the Australian Alps, the country's highest mountain range. As of June 2023, Canberra's estimated population was 466,566.

The history of Canberra details the development of the city of Canberra from the time before European settlement to the city's planning by the Chicago architect Walter Burley Griffin in collaboration with Marion Mahony Griffin, and its subsequent development to the present day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Burley Griffin</span> Man-made lake in Canberra, Australia

Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River, which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle, was dammed. It is named after Walter Burley Griffin, the architect who won the competition to design the city of Canberra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molonglo River</span> River in Australia

The Molonglo River is a perennial river that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin. It is located in the Monaro and Capital Country regions of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acton, Australian Capital Territory</span> Suburb of Canberra, Australia

Acton is a suburb of Canberra, ACT, Australia. Acton covers an area west of the CBD, bordered by Black Mountain to the west and Lake Burley Griffin in the south. The Australian National University campus covers most of the suburb, though also located in Acton is the National Film and Sound Archive, a branch of the CSIRO and the National Museum of Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yarralumla, Australian Capital Territory</span> Suburb of Canberra, Australia

Yarralumla is a large inner south suburb of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. Located approximately 3.5 km (2.2 mi) south-west of the city, Yarralumla extends along the south-west bank of Lake Burley Griffin from Scrivener Dam to Commonwealth Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lennox Gardens</span>

Lennox Gardens, a park in Canberra, Australia, lying on the south side of Lake Burley Griffin, close to Commonwealth Avenue Bridge and Albert Hall in the suburb of Yarralumla. Before the construction of Lake Burley Griffin a road ran through the present garden, this road being one of two main crossing points across the Molonglo River. The name of the road was Lennox Crossing from which the present garden takes its name. The northern segment of the road is still present on Acton peninsula. The garden was officially named in 1963. Lennox Crossing was named after David Lennox, an early bridge builder in NSW and Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commonwealth Avenue (Canberra)</span> Road in Canberra, Australia

Commonwealth Avenue is a major road in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. It connects Civic with South Canberra. Specifically, it runs between City Hill and Capital Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queanbeyan River</span> River in Australian Capital Territory, Australia

The Queanbeyan River, a perennial stream that is part of the Molonglo catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Monaro and Capital Country regions of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, in Australia. The river is 104 kilometres (65 mi) in length with a catchment area of 96,000 hectares. The Queanbeyan River and the Cotter River meet the potable water supply needs of the Canberra and Queanbeyan region and whose water quality is specifically protected under Federal legislation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Russell, Australian Capital Territory</span> Suburb of Canberra, Australia

Russell is a suburb of Canberra, Australia in the North Canberra district. Russell is one of the smallest suburbs in Canberra, comprising a number of government offices but no private residences. It is probably best known for the headquarters of the Australian Defence Force, which is housed in the Russell Offices complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Googong Dam</span> Dam in Queanbeyan, New South Wales

Googong Dam is a minor ungated earth and rock fill with clay core embankment dam with concrete chute spillway plus a nearby 13 metres (43 ft) high earthfill saddle embankment across the Queanbeyan River upstream of Queanbeyan in the Capital Country region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's purpose includes water supply for Canberra and Queanbeyan. The impounded reservoir is called Googong Reservoir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Springbank Island</span>

Springbank Island is an island located on Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Springbank Island is named after a former agricultural property that was partially submerged to create Lake Burley Griffin. An elevated part of the former property now comprises the island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scrivener Dam</span> Dam in Canberra, ACT

Scrivener Dam is a concrete gravity dam that impounds the Molonglo River in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The dam creates Lake Burley Griffin, which was established for recreational and ornamental purposes. Named in honour of surveyor Charles Scrivener, the dam was officially inaugurated on 20 September 1963 and the official filling of the lake commemorated on 17 October 1964 by the Prime Minister, Robert Menzies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parish of Canberra</span> Place in Australian Capital Territory

Canberra Parish is a former parish of Murray County, New South Wales, a cadastral unit for use on land titles. It was formed in the nineteenth century, and existed until 1 January 1911, when the Seat of Government (Administration) Act 1910 came into force, after the land was transferred to the Commonwealth government in 1909 to be used to form the Australian Capital Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parish of Narrabundah</span> Place in Australian Capital Territory

Narrabundah Parish is a former parish of Murray County, New South Wales, a cadastral unit for use on land titles. It was formed in the nineteenth century, and existed until 1 January 1911, when the Seat of Government (Administration) Act 1910 came into force, after the land was transferred to the Commonwealth government in 1909 to be used to form the Australian Capital Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Lake Burley Griffin</span> Notable events in the history of the artificial water body in Canberra

The history of Lake Burley Griffin, an artificial body of water in Canberra, the capital of Australia, is highly complex. Following its initial design in the 1910s, extensive political disputes occurred until it was finally built in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sullivans Creek</span> River in Australian Capital Territory, Australia

Sullivans Creek, a partly perennial stream of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

Jerrabomberra Creek, a partly perennial stream of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Capital Country region spanning both New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, Australia.

Scott's Crossing Road was a former roadway connecting north and south Canberra, across the Molonglo River floodplain. It was named after John Scott, who was an early settler in the region, and whose homestead was located at its southern end. It was submerged by the filling of Lake Burley Griffin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerrabomberra Wetlands</span> Protected area in Australian Capital Territory

Jerrabomberra Wetlands Nature Reserve is a nationally important group of small wetlands in central Canberra. The Wetlands are on a part of the Molonglo River - Jerrabomberra Creek floodplain that became permanently inundated when the Molonglo River was dammed to form Lake Burley Griffin in 1964.

References

  1. ↑ Mildenhall, William James (1925). "Second Commonwealth Avenue Bridge" (image). ACT Heritage Library: ImagesACT. Government of the Australian Capital Territory . Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  2. 1 2 Ling, Ted, ed. (2013). "Expansion on a grand scale" (Part 1: Chapter 5). Government Records about the Australian Capital Territory. National Archives of Australia . Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  3. ↑ Ling, Ted, ed. (2013). "The Holford Report" (Part 1: Chapter 5). Government Records about the Australian Capital Territory. National Archives of Australia . Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "Lake Burley Griffin Scheme, consisting of Lake impounded by Scrivener Dam, and Commonwealth and Kings Ave. bridges" (Chapter 6). The Institution of Engineers, Australia, Canberra Division. 22 February 2001. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  5. ↑ Birkett, E. M.; Fernie, G. M. (July 1964). "Bridges in the Canberra Central Lake Area - Design" (PDF). The Journal of the Institute of Engineers, Australia. 36. The Institution of Engineers, Australia: 139–147. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  6. ↑ Kelleher AO, Graeme (6 July 2019). "Commonwealth Avenue Bridge - Heritage". Lake Burley Griffin Guardians. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  7. ↑ "Commonwealth Avenue Bridge". Infrastructure Australia .
  8. ↑ Dingwell, Doug (3 April 2019). "Move to widen Commonwealth Ave Bridge, renew dam gets federal backing". WAtoday . Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  9. ↑ Bushnell, Ian (22 May 2019). "Light rail prompts NCA to look at replacing Commonwealth Avenue Bridge". RiotACT. Retrieved 25 March 2020.

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