Vancouver History: Lions Gate Bridge

If there's one thing more pervasive than rain in Vancouver, it's bridges. Officially known as the First Narrows bridge, the Lions Gate is one of Vancouver's most recognizable landmarks and constant sources of frustration. It links the communities of downtown Vancouver with those of North and West Vancouver and is named after the two famous mountain peaks that overlook it.

As with large public-work projects today, controversy was rampant during the initial planning stages of the Lions Gate. Many were against the development because they feared it would ruin Stanley Park - clearly not knowing that 68 years later strong winds would do that anyways. Regardless, in 1927 it was put to a vote which did not pass and subsequently there was little further discussion of the project.

That is, until Alfred James Towle Taylor - who owned the provincial franchise to build the bridge - was able to convince the Guinness family (yes, that Guinness) to purchase the land to develop the bridge. The Guinness family purchased 4700 acres of West Vancouver land through a company which may sound a tad familiar - British Pacific Properties Ltd - and on December 13, 1933 a second plebiscite was held which passed 2 to 1.

Construction of the Lions Gate began on March 31, 1937 and was opened to the public on November 14, 1938 at a cost of close to $6 million, making it not only one of the cheaper projects in Vancouver History (thanks depression!), but also one of the few to be completed in a reasonable amount of time. At the time it was the longest suspension bridge in the British Empire, and a second "official" opening on May 29, 1939 had King George the VI and Queen Elizabeth preside over the ceremonies during their tour of Canada. In 1955 the Guinness family sold the bridge back to B.C. for essentially no profit when calculated for inflation.

Since it's construction, the Lions Gate has gone through a few, somewhat notable transformations: while initially charging a fare of 25 cents per car, this practice was dropped in 1963; originally constructed as a two-lane highway, a third was eventually painted on to allow for passing; in 1975 some parts of the bridge were updated so we don't die when we try to cross it; and in 1986 the Guinness family gave the the lights that line the bridge to the City of Vancouver - thanks for all the photo ops!

While the Lions Gate allows lots of us access to West Van and the North Shore, the bridge certainly has its faults. During the 1990's, discussion was held as how to update the bridge significantly. Perhaps another level? Or a tunnel? Or maybe a bridge right next to it? While the City heard all these interesting, new ideas for quelling the rising problems of traffic concentration they decided on a simple, no non-sense plan - do nothing! The ideas that were tossed around did not jive with the City's desire to decrease traffic, and so it was decided that they would upgrade the bridge by widening the lanes slightly, rather than adding any new lanes or significant construction - commuters around Vancouver cried.

Regardless of all it's faults in terms of dealing with day-to-day traffic, no one can deny that the Lions Gate bridge is a great-looking Vancouver landmark, especially so since Guinness finally got around to delivering those lights. So feel free to take a ride over the bridge, and while you're cursing the god-awful traffic make sure to appreciate how beautiful the bridge truly is.

(Photos courtesy of BR Flickr pool members kk+, entheos_fog ,and tilo dreissen)