Two people were spotted climbing the arches of Los Angeles’ new Sixth Street Bridge Thursday night. Ted Chen reports July 22, 2022.
A week of dangerous, raucous and sometimes bizarre stunts and on Los Angeles' new Sixth Street Bridge continued Thursday night when at least two people climbed the viaduct's concrete arches.
The bridge in Boyle Heights east of downtown Los Angeles opened earlier this month and almost immediately became an attractive landmark for escapades and unruly behavior that tied up traffic. On Thursday night, video showed people climbing the 60-foot high arches and a heavily damaged pickup parked on the bridge.
The pickup was damaged in a crash Thursday that scattered vehicle body parts in lanes. No arrests or injuries were reported.
On Monday, police closed the bridge for about an hour overnight due to a takeover that involved about 60 to 100 vehicles. A driver performing burnouts during the takeover was arrested later this week in a hit-and-run crash on the bridge. The man left the scene, but left his Dodge Challenger behind.
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The takeover left the pavement covered in tire marks.
Days later, video posted to Instagram showed someone seated in a barber's chair and draped in a smock receiving a haircut as traffic passes just feet away.
The $588 million viaduct project is the largest bridge in the history of Los Angeles. The span lined on each side with concrete arches connects commuters from Boyle Heights to downtown LA's Arts District.
The original viaduct was first built in 1932 and was featured in several iconic films such as "Grease," "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" and "Drive."
“It is in many ways the embodiment of what Los Angeles strives to be - - a city that connects community, the cultural capital of the world,” Mayor Eric Garcetti told reporters two days before the bridge opened.
The city's Bureau of Engineering plans to create a 12-acre park under the bridge to provide access to the LA River, public art, recreational programming and more.
The downtown side of the park will include a rain garden, planted seating area, a play and performance lawn, a sculpture garden, a meadow, a dog play area, an adult fitness section, cafe and restrooms, a sloped river gateway, an urban forest and terraces.
The Boyle Heights side will feature a skateboard area; a meadow; a picnic area; a synthetic turf soccer field; flexible courts sized for basketball, futsal and volleyball; a play and performance lawn; a children's play area; a promenade; a landscaped seating area; an adult fitness area; a rain garden; a dog play area and grilling spaces.
