CINCINNATI'S MILL CREEK AREA
Aug. 2006
PART 3
What is this again about a drought? Seriously, they called it that on the radio just a few days earlier, if you can believe that. This is looking north at the swollen Mill Creek from the Hopple Street Viaduct.
Further still on Beekman Street, my beloved Big Two-Seven just suddenly pops into view! This is just before you get to I-74.
I tried researching to see what this is. Apparently it's just a channel for a tiny stream. This is from Beekman near Dreman Avenue. The bridge on Beekman over this channel is dated 1995 (though I know an earlier version of the bridge did exist here).
Where old BGS's go to die! Now we're back on State Avenue, about where it goes under the Western Hills Viaduct. This lot is used as storage for the city traffic department. Right in the center of this picture, you can see BGS's for I-471, US 50/OH 264, and other famous thoroughfares. (With their noses in the air. Just joking.) These old BGS's have stories behind them. I remember seeing some of these particular signs posted several miles away a while back - I know they're the same signs because of their layout and amount of wear - and I was awed to see them thrown in a heap across town years later.
Another view of State Avenue going under the Western Hills Viaduct. This highlights the double-decked nature of that span. Cincinnati is a very vertical city compared to most. It has steep hills, tall buildings, tunnels, and several roads like this that are double-storied. Even the dreaded secret bridge 2 miles south of here almost lies under the Waldvogel Viaduct.
Looking east onto the Western Hills Viaduct. The roadway splits here: On the right (where the orange car is going), it ramps down to the lower deck. On the left, it goes to the upper level. The ramp to the lower deck is met by the ramp from State Avenue, which emerges from the right. According to the green sign, the lower level goes to I-75 south; the upper deck goes to I-75 north.
Here we're at 8th & State looking east onto the 8th Street Viaduct. The 8th Street Viaduct is one of my fave roads in the area, for it is one of very few that features a bike lane - or at least it did when this photo was taken. It's a beaut! The buildings on the left side of 8th that have street level access to the viaduct are possibly endangered. The viaduct was scheduled to be closed for 6 months soon after this picture was taken. Figures, doesn't it? The last rehab of the viaduct had just been completed in 2002, when some abandoned ramps were removed - which I know because that was when I had my first work assignment there. The sign for the US 50 detour is for an unrelated project. The headaches never end, do they?
This ramp was one of the lower approaches to the more complicated Waldvogel Viaduct. The upbound side of the ramp was closed for good (although the downbound side was still open). This is along State Avenue. After the 8th Street Viaduct is reopened, the Waldvogel is slated for replacement - so enjoy it while you can.
Now we're at the bottom of State Avenue, where it meets River Road, which carries US 50. (The detour sign is redundant.) OH 264 follows this stretch of State Avenue and turns left to piggyback on US 50.
Going east on River Road, you see the Waldvogel Viaduct soaring overhead.