Webcam Irkutsk. Glazkovsky bridge in real time
Glazkovsky Bridge (until 2011 unofficially called Old Angarsky Bridge) is a bridge across the Angara River in Irkutsk, connecting the Right Bank and Sverdlovsky districts of the city. It was built in 1931-1936, designed by engineer P.N.Polikarpov and architect I.A.Frantsuz as a monument to Lenin. On the right bank of the Angara River the bridge has an exit to Chkalov and Stepana Razina streets, on the left bank - to Irkutnaya, Dzhambul, Mayakovsky and Chelnokov streets.
The total length of the bridge is 1,245 m. It is supported by 5 river and 32 bank arms. The bridge has four spans of reinforced concrete, the length of the central spans - 80 m, marginal - 70 m. Width - 18 meters. Traffic is four lanes, including a two-track streetcar, on both sides there are sidewalks. The complex structure of the bridge also includes an overpass over the railroad tracks, two overpasses and four exits.
The bridge was originally open to pedestrian and two-lane vehicular traffic. Also, a narrow gauge track was laid for the needs of the Irkutsk Heavy Engineering Plant, with the expectation of a railway platform weighing up to 80 tons. In 1947, the city streetcar line was built and launched, at the beginning - a single-track, and since 1949 - a double-track.
Since 1955 the four-lane car traffic was allowed on the bridge, which additionally increased the load on its structures. In 1979 the heating main from the Novo-Irkutsk Thermal Power Plant was installed on the bridge, which increased the loading by 2 tons per each linear meter of the bridge. In 1995, the narrow-gauge road was dismantled and the streetcar tracks were reconstructed.
Since its opening, the bridge has undergone only routine repairs.
According to experts, the bridge needs a major overhaul, especially its metal structures. The project of reconstruction is ready, but the start date of works is unknown.
Since 2011, the bridge is officially called Glazkovsky. The names of the Old Bridge and Angarsk Bridge are also commonly used.
