We took advantage of the annual walk on the lower level of the Veterans Memorial Bridge. We did have to park and walk a little way because the area was so busy. The walk is free and you have to sign a waiver before entering. They made it very easy with staff waiting to help you near the entrance. Dogs are allowed in the walk. They positioned bands at each end of the bridge and one in the middle. There was also a medical station in the event of an emergency. The experience was unique to me. Views of the river were somewhat obstructed by much of the bridge. The walk was down the middle portion so there was no getting close to the edge. This was clearly for safety reasons. I am happy we were able to walk the bridge this year. read more

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I've driven past the Veterans Memorial Bridge hundreds of times now since moving to Cleveland. The bridge is half a mile in distance so walkers, runners, and bikers can use the pedestrian path. The bridge is well kept and clean. ANNUAL TOUR -- I and plenty of residents and visitors got lucky to see what lies beneath the bridge for the annual self-guided bridge tour and lights show (see my attached photos). This free event was part of a series of events around Cleveland that honours the 50th anniversary of the Cuyahoga River catching on fire. On Saturday, 22 June 2019, the Cuyahoga County's Public Works Department department hosted a tour of the Veteran's Memorial Bridge and Subway station. The bridge tour was awesome. The lower deck (dark, abandoned tunnel), is the part of the bridge I got to tour and that's the part that was open for viewing. According to an online source, this part of the bridge has not been used since 1954 when streetcars were discontinued and it is rarely shown to the public. LIGHTS SHOW -- It was amazing!!! I arrived around 9:30pm. There was one section of the bridge where lights moved around in a pattern on the floor and another section where there were string lights hung up. All the lights had different colours. The whole lights display was fantastic and there was music playing too (see my attached photos). The organization of the event was great and police officers were around to keep everyone safe. I read the details online and signed my waiver beforehand. So when I arrived, I didn't have to wait to sign a waiver. Also, there really was no line to enter the bridge. I had about 2 people in front of me when I arrived. Once I got inside the bridge, it was crowded but not horribly so because people came in and out. I really enjoyed this unique opportunity to view the inside of the bridge (below the car level). My favourite part besides the lights show was seeing the old streetcars that were stationed inside; they looked like subway trains. I also loved the downtown Cleveland view of the Flats neighbourhood from the bridge especially the sunset. I recommend the bridge tour to anyone visiting Cleveland during the summer and also to Cleveland residents. The bridge is open from about 10am to 10pm (once a year) but it is better to come in the evening to view the lights show because it is darker at night. **** - 93 total reviews in 2019 - 302 total Yelp reviews - Reviewed on 19 July 2019 read more

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The Cuyahoga County's Public Works Department department allows the public to venture underneath the 3112-foot bridge to one of Cleveland's eeriest locales once a year. So since this has already happened planning for next years adventure gives you plenty of time to mark it on your calendar but you'll have to Google the date for 2019. This is a dog friendly adventure so take your pooch along on this very unusual and self guided tour, be sure to bring water as this bridge is very long. There are rest benches inside but I didn't see any bathroom facilities and if you're afraid of heights you'll want to skip this. I took Lolly the Trolly from the east side and entered the bridge on its west entrance but left the bridge at the other end on the east side exit and headed over to the Art Fest that was going on. This self guided tour isn't a 'Must Do' but it's cool enough that it should be on your list of things to see in Cleveland. read more

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I am a huge fan of all bridges but these historic bridges that were build in a time when construction and engineering methods were in their infancy and each were considered feats only taken on by the most knowledgeable engineers of the era and financed by the great entrepreneurs of the day are especially fascinating to me. The Veterans Memorial Bridge opened to traffic on Thanksgiving Day 1917 as the Detroit-Superior Bridge, was the city's first high-level bridge over the Cuyahoga River. Built at a cost of $5.284 million, the bridge took 5 years to complete. Its outer ends consist of a series of 12 concrete arches; its center span, 96' above the Cuyahoga River, is an overhead arch of steel 591' in length. Altogether the bridge is 3,112' long and, including approaches, stretches 5,630'. The bridge carries 2 decks. The upper deck was designed for vehicular and pedestrian traffic, while the lower deck was to carry streetcars. The subway, as the lower deck was called, had entry ramps at W. 6th St. and Superior Ave., on W. 25th St., and on Detroit Ave. Four sets of tracks ran along the lower level, with passenger stations located at each end. By 1930, with traffic reaching a volume of 70,400 automobiles a day, the bridge was being called the "nation's busiest." With the ending of streetcar operations in 1954, the subway level stood empty and the ramps leading to the lower level were covered over in Nov. 1955. The opening of the Innerbelt Bridge in 1959 relieved some congestion, but the Detroit-Superior Bridge remained a rush-hour bottleneck. A 2-year renovation, completed in May 1969 at a cost of $6 million, included adding 2 additional traffic lanes by narrowing existing sidewalks from 15 to 5 ft. and cantilevering the new lanes outside the central arch. The bridge was renamed Veterans Memorial in Veterans Day ceremonies on 11 Nov. 1989. Placed on the Natl. Register of Historic Places in 1976, the bridge was scheduled to be completely restored in time for the 1996 bicentennial celebration of Cleveland. The $49 million "City of Bridges" project. read more

Veterans Memorial Bridge - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

This is a great historic bridge. As someone who travels quite a bit, I always appreciate this baby more when I get home. Not all cities take the time to maintain their bridges, so for that, I'm appreciative. This bridge is often included in the picturesque shots of Cleveland we see everywhere. When I mentioned the decent attention to upkeep, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how much I appreciate the uplighting. The green and blue lights are always working and I don't think I've ever seen a bulb out. It gives me a lot of pride to show the view of Cleveland from the Superior Viaduct with this bridge glowing brightly in the background. It completes our skyline from the Flats angle. Built-in 1918 for $5 million (think about that for 1918 - crazy), it was the biggest bridge of its kind in the world and was helped financed by the bigwigs of the time. Its a cool part of national history and Cleveland history. I'm glad its ours. read more

I'm starting to feel bad that I'm getting all this First to Review credit for Cleveland landmarks. If you've ever spent much time with Clevelanders, you know that they're a generous, proud, and humble bunch. Those last two adjectives, "proud" and "humble," might seem contradictory, but people from Cleveland are rightly proud of the sense of community that exists in the city itself. For all the popular-culture and economic abuse Cleveland has taken over the years, the people still very much love their city. Not only the idea of their city, but the city itself. They're humble too; you generally won't hear them spouting off about their superiority in any field--except maybe sports, but that's also conflicted. Cleveland's humbleness, though, can border on neurosis, as the city definitely has an inferiority complex when it comes to other "great cities" in the Midwest, whatever that means. The city is all too willing to spend way too much public money on stuff that doesn't really matter, like Browns Stadium, when things that do matter, like public schools, are falling apart. The Veterans Memorial Bridge, known locally as the Detroit-Superior Bridge, exemplifies a lot of the qualities of Clevelanders themselves. It's not the biggest, flashiest, most well known bridge. During the day, it's not terribly beautiful. But it gets the job done, and there's something downright enjoyable about driving and walking across the bridge, especially if you're going from the Near West Side to Downtown. The court building on the eastern edge of the Cuyahoga River takes away slightly from the view of the Terminal Tower from the bridge (the court building was constructed in 2000), but it's still nice looking at Cleveland's modest skyline. At night, the bridge is absolutely gorgeous. When I lived in Cleveland, we sometimes referred to the Detroit-Superior Bridge as the Blue Bridge because it was lit blue at night (and in the opening to The Drew Carey Show). This bridge is the only place in my life I've ever received a moving violation (speeding), which I successfully fought in court. I also used to think it was funny that the bridge was called the Detroit-Superior Bridge, as it seemed to suggest that Clevelanders thought Detroit was a superior city to Cleveland. In fact, the common nickname refers to Detroit and Superior Avenues, the names of the streets that lead to the bridge on either side. Superior Avenue is named after Lake Superior (I believe all five Great Lakes have streets named after them downtown). For a time, I mistakenly believed that Detroit Avenue led directly to a westbound highway that ran to Detroit, Michigan. Still, it is funny that one of Cleveland's most visible landmarks is partially named after another city. read more

the veterans memorial bridge opens up for tours two times a year - memorial day weekend and labor day weekend. the tour is self guided, and takes you through various points of the bridge - from the street car station to the open area below the street level. the tour was really cool - great views, plus a little history lesson on the old cleveland street car system. did i mention it's free?! not only is the tour free, parking is free too! check out the official website for 2010 dates and information when it becomes available. i would highly recommend this tour - great for all ages. http://www.cuyctyengineers.org/subway_tour.htm read more

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Regarding the self-guided tour The date of the subway level open house finally fit my schedule and I was able to go. I walked across the bridge to the west on the street level sidewalk and easily found the door leading down. There were some pictures set up along the walk way. When getting down to the subway level it was quite dark and iPhone cameras did not suffice unfortunately; though their flashlights were handy. You can walk (carefully) around and see the old tracks, peer down closed off tunnels and stairs, and even get a glimpse into the doorway that used to lead to the Forest City Trust Building (now the Massimo da Milano restaurant in Ohio City). As you head east the walkway smooths out and you actually cross the entire bridge length to an exit located on the east side. Along the way there were more pictures set up, some art on the plywood flooring, and a few spots where you could get close to the railing and take better pictures. Maybe an hour or so worth of activity down here; a bit more if you stopped to listen to the video and historical reading taking place. read more

Veterans Memorial Bridge - View out from subway level - Landmarks & Historical Buildings Near Me - Cleveland, Ohio

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Great historic bridge. Gets me Downtown from the West Side. Hipsters used to use it for some techno festival but they moved on I think.. Guess ya cant park food trucks there or something? read more

This place must be on top of the national security threat list. The sheriffs department ran this event like an border check point - only with more security! The 20 + deputies at the entrance were armed with sub- machine guns, body armor, tactical vests, helmets, dogs, etc. Visitors were required to show a drivers license and sign digital documents releasing rights to enter the event. And then....metal detectors and personal property was searched. Seriously? To see the lower level of the bridge...abandoned train tracks and a dirty tunnel. Our family loaded up and drove nearly thirty miles to come see the lower level when it was opened this past week. We were surprised to see how many people there were when we arrived. Although we thought it unusual to have a check-in process we gladly lined up and showed our ID. Waiting in line for about ten minutes gave us pause to wonder about the completely over-the-too level of security the sheriffs department was displaying. There were more heavily armed officers than I have ever seen in one place. When we approached the metal detectors (because obviously this is necessary) we had to empty all our pockets. My keychain has a tiny Swiss Army knife on it. It has a nail file, scissors, toothpick and tweezers along with the 1.24" blade. The deputy at the metal detector bluntly told me "take it off your keychain and return it to your car or it becomes property of the county." Seriously? A 1.24" blade 1/2 the length of my thumb is a problem for the 20+ heavily armed deputies? We turned around and walked away. Why can hundreds of thousands of visitors enter Browns stadium, Progressive field and Arena annually without such issues but an abandoned train tunnel is a problem? Visit someplace else instead - anywhere your rights will be respected and not overrun by this group. read more