The Anna Livia Bridge formerly Chapelizod Bridge , is a road bridge spanning the River Liffey

River Liffey

The Liffey is a river in Ireland, which flows through the centre of Dublin. Its major tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac. The river supplies much of Dublin's water, and a range of recreational opportunities.-Name:The river was previously named An Ruirthech,...

 in Dublin, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 and joining the Lucan Road to Chapelizod

Chapelizod

Chapelizod is a picturesque Irish village preserved within the city of Dublin, Ireland. It lies in the verdant wooded valley of the River Liffey, on the way to the slopes of the Strawberry Beds, below the Phoenix Park. The village is associated with Iseult of Ireland and the location of Iseault's...

 Road.

History

As the Liffey flows into the town of Chapelizod, a weir divides the course to form a large mill race

Mill race

A mill race, raceway or mill lade is the current or channel of a stream, especially one for conducting water to or from a water wheel or other device for utilizing its energy...

. Split by the two bodies of water, the island at Chapelizod has been a base for industry for more than 150 years.

The main flow is crossed by a four-span stone arch bridge

Arch bridge

An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...

, unusual in having two large central spans and two much smaller end spans. This bridge was built in the 1660s, and originally named Chapelizod Bridge.

The bridge was renamed in 1982 to mark the centenary of James Joyce

James Joyce

James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...

's birth. (The bridge is mentioned in Joyce's Dubliners

Dubliners

Dubliners is a collection of 15 short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. They were meant to be a naturalistic depiction of Irish middle class life in and around Dublin in the early years of the 20th century....

, as one of his "Dubliners", James Duffy, lives in Chapelizod and visits a public house near the bridge. Anna Livia

Anna Livia

Anna Livia is a bronze monument formerly located on O'Connell Street in Dublin, Ireland.Designed by the sculptor Eamonn O'Doherty, the monument was commissioned by businessman Michael Smurfit, in memory of his father, for the Dublin Millennium celebrations in 1988.The monument is a personification...

is the name given to the personification of the River Liffey, and was a principal character in Joyce's Finnegans Wake

Finnegans Wake

Finnegans Wake is a novel by Irish author James Joyce, significant for its experimental style and resulting reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the English language. Written in Paris over a period of seventeen years, and published in 1939, two years before the author's...

- her final monologue recalls her life as she walks along the Liffey.)

Recent developments

As the only bridge 8 kilometers past the Strawberry Beds to Chapelizod, and a main thoroughfare for traffic from the western suburbs (e.g.: Clonsilla and Blanchardstown) to Dublin city center, the volume of road traffic over the bridge and through Chapelizod has increased into recent years.

Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council

Dublin City Council is the local authority for the city of Dublin in Ireland. It has 52 members and is the largest local authority in Ireland. Until 2001, it was known as Dublin Corporation.-Legal status:...

planned changes to bridge, as part of a general "Traffic Management Plan for the Chapelizod area". The changes include the construction of separate footbridge sections outside the parapets of the bridge (to improve pedestrian safety), and the creation of cycle lanes on the bridge. Preparatory works for this initiative commenced in August 2010.