High Street Bridge

The High Street Bridge is a double-leaf bascule drawbridge spanning 296 feet of the Oakland Estuary in the San Francisco Bay Area. It links the cities of Oakland and Alameda. The bridge is opened approximately 1400 times a year. The bridge carries an average of 26,000 vehicles per year. The bridge was built when the Oakland Estuary was trenched, converting Alameda from a peninsula to an island.

The High Street bridge is one of the four bridges and two tunnels that allow access to Alameda.

History

The original iron swing bridge was completed in 1894 by the Harrison Bridge Company for $24,747. The High Street, Park Street and Fruitvale Avenue bridges, were built by the U.S. Government in exchange for permission and rights-of-way to dredge the channel between San Antonio Creek and San Leandro Bay. In May 1901 a fire destroyed the swing span and part of the approaches, which were rebuilt the following year. The present bridge was designed by the County of Alameda Surveyors Office and constructed under the Federal WPA Program in 1939 at a cost of $750,000.