Photos: Atlanta’s Northside Drive Pedestrian Bridge Previous Gallery 1 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC The Northside Drive pedestrian bridge outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Tuesday, January 29, 2019.HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 2 / 13 HANDOUT/STEPHEN DEERE Access to the new Northside Drive pedestrian bridge is blocked in this Jan. 30, 2019, photo. City officials say security concerns ahead of Super Bowl LIII prompted the closure. STEPHEN DEERE/AJC 3 / 13 HANDOUT/City of Atlanta An aerial artist rendering of the Northside Drive Pedestrian Bridge, with its long ramps on either end. HANDOUT/City of Atlanta 4 / 13 HANDOUT/City of AtlantaHANDOUT/City of Atlanta A ground-level view of the Northside Drive Pedestrian Bridge. HANDOUT/City of Atlanta 5 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC In March 2018, the Atlanta City Council grudgingly approved an additional $10 million to complete the Northside Drive pedestrian bridge in time for Super Bowl 53. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 6 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC They were told that the project's total cost would not exceed $23.2 million and that it was needed to connect residents in the Vine City community to downtown and the stadium. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 7 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC It turns out that the bridge is closed to the public for the big game and that the city actually spent more than $27 million on the project. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 8 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC Why is the bridge closed before the Super Bowl? “This event has been categorized by the federal government as a Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) Level 1,” according to an Atlanta spokesperson. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 9 / 13 HYOSUB SHIN / AJC Officials continued: “The FBI and NFL in consultation with other security partners made the determination to close the bridge to the public ahead of the event. However, the bridge will be open for attendees to exit at the conclusion of the game.” HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM 10 / 13 JOHN SPINK / AJC/JOHN SPINK / AJC Construction workers (left to right) Harold Render, Ant Davis and Adolfo Alvarez were bundled up against the morning chill as they worked on the Northside Drive Pedestrian Bridge that will connect Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the Vine City MARTA station. JOHN SPINK/JSPINK@AJC.COM 11 / 13 JOHN SPINK / AJC/JOHN SPINK / AJC The construction of the bridge began in 2016 under former Mayor Kasim Reed, whose administration promised that was being built for the Vine City community. JOHN SPINK/JSPINK@AJC.COM 12 / 13 JOHN SPINK / AJC/JOHN SPINK / AJC However, the AJC that year published a story that showed city records indicating the bridge was built to benefit the new Mercedes Benz Stadium. JOHN SPINK/JSPINK@AJC.COM 13 / 13 JOHN SPINK / AJC/JOHN SPINK / AJC Last year, the Bottoms administration requested that the City Council authorize additional $10 million for the bridge, arguing that the money was needed to get the bridge ready for Super Bowl 53. JOHN SPINK/JSPINK@AJC.COM Related UPDATE: Bridge closed to public for Super Bowl due to security concerns Cost of pedestrian bridge linking downtown to stadium grows Glitzy bridge for new Falcons stadium could cost double what city said Conditional OK for $12.9M Falcons stadium bridge contract Sign up for e-newsletters Want more news? Sign up for free e-newsletters to get more of AJC delivered to your inbox.
