A critical piece of infrastructure connecting one side of the west side of San Bernardino to the other, which has been out of commission for five years, is now up and running again. The new 270-million-dollar Mt. Vernon Avenue Bridge is set for its reopening celebration on Saturday, Aug. 23.
The bridge was originally built in 1934 and shut down in 2020 after it was deemed structurally unsound. It was demolished, and the two-year rebuild started in 2023. While it’s a quarter mile long, the detour to bypass it can be more than three miles long.
“For the last five years, there has not been a point of access to get from one side of the westside of San Bernardino to the other. It’s an absolutely critical project,” Jeff Kraus, City of San Bernardino, said.
Kraus said the impacts of the closure affected nearly everyone, as before its closure, about 60,000 vehicles crossed the bridge daily. “It was a life-link for businesses to reach their customers on the other side of the bridge.”…