Home » Themes » Government » State
Bakewell Heritage WallPrint Page 
The Bakewell Heritage Wall commemorates the former Bakewell Bridge, and its replacement, the Bakewell Underpass.
The concrete Bakewell Bridge was constructed in the 1920’s jointly by the South Australian Government and the Metropolitan Tramways Trust. It had multiple pylons and the trains went under the road, in-between the pylons. The Bakewell Bridge took all the Glover Avenue road traffic up over the top of the railway line and down the other side to join Henley Beach Road.
In 2001 there was an accident at the bridge. A freight train hit one of the pylons. The bridge didn’t fall, but its structural integrity was compromised. For months the bridge was closed which created traffic chaos for those who commuted to and from the western suburbs.
The damaged pylon was reinforced as a stop-gap measure, but the State Government immediately started planning to replace the bridge. Eventually the bridge was replaced with what we now call the Bakewell Underpass, constructed in 2006 and 2007, at a cost of $41 million.
Location
| Address: | East Terrace & Henley Beach Road, Torrensville, 5031 |
|---|---|
| State: | SA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -34.923161 Long: 138.579291 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | Government |
| Sub-Theme: | State |
Dedication
Bakewell Heritage Wall
This wall commemorates the former Bakewell Bridge, and its replacement, the Bakewell Underpass.
The bridge was built by Essery & Cartledge to relieve congestion on King William Street and included roadways on either side of two tram tracks, a footpath of the southern side and stairs down to the bottom level. The total cost to build was 96,000 pounds.
Trams travelled from Henley Beach to the city and back over the bridge from 1925 to 1957.
The bridge was officially opened on 22 December 1925 by the Premier Mr John Gunn.
As well as the official opening, on the eastern side of the bridge a ribbon was cut by Councillor Charles R. Glover, Adelaide City Council after whom the road was named and on the west side of the bridge a ribbon was cut by Mr Edwin T. Isley Mayor of Thebarton.
The bridge was name after Edward Howard Bakewell JP (1859 - 1944). Mr Bakewell was a prominent South Australian businessman and Chairman of the Municipal Tramways Trust from 1922 - 1937.
This wall formed part of the balustrade from the former bridge and the bluestone cladding came from the original kerb and gutter on the southern side of the Henley Beach Road slip lane.
