Astoria Scum River Bridge
Ah, yes, yes y’all.
Another sweet ol’ collabo from Jason Eppink and myself.
As the inimitable Eppink explains:
“For years, a leaking pipe on 33rd Street beneath the Hell Gate Bridge viaduct approach has submerged more than a hundred square feet of a heavily-trafficked sidewalk in a festering cesspool of standing water. In the winter, Astoria Scum River, as it’s called, ices over and becomes particularly hazardous to cross. Posterchild and I constructed this bridge as a gift to the pedestrians of Astoria.”
Some very interesting things have developed since the bridge was installed, the least of which was the dedication plaque slowly developing its full-blown patina!
More on all that soon!
All photos courtesy of Jason Eppink.










January 26th, 2010 at 1:20 am
Wow, how long has this been like this? I’m surprised nobody has taken care of this, although I guess that is why you’re bringing attention to it. Maybe now people will realize how stupid and dangerous this is, and then your bridge won’t be needed (although it is a nice addition so hopefully the city leaves it). I think technically if you donate it to the city they aren’t allowed to dispose of it, but I’m not sure how that works up where ya’ll are at.
January 26th, 2010 at 6:59 am
Haha, that is awesome. I love seeing people use your work (as no doubt, you do too).
I brandish this one a positive success!
January 26th, 2010 at 8:49 am
Oh man, that is totally fantastic.
January 26th, 2010 at 9:52 am
I like it. More infrastructure and social-improvement projects such as this are just what we need to get Americans working and the our country out of the recession.
January 26th, 2010 at 10:30 pm
[...] More photos here. [...]
January 26th, 2010 at 11:29 pm
kudos on a great idea, well executed!
January 27th, 2010 at 2:31 am
So where is this Astoria area; city, country?
January 27th, 2010 at 10:54 am
Wow thats stupid. If you wanted to put down some work, why not just fix the pipe?? That would have been a benefit to your community. Now you are just an joking asshole trying make some point. In a month that bridge will have been sabotaged by some punk. Then the people will just have a piece of junk blocking the free way over the scum.
January 27th, 2010 at 11:29 am
@Anna wow so negative! who are they to fix a pipe – I don’t imagine they’re familiar with the plumbing infrastructure, where the scum comes from, and where/how they could divert it.
January 27th, 2010 at 1:14 pm
@Anna – Not to mention it would be a felony to tamper with those pipes! That bridge is federal property! I live nearby and have taken stewardship of the bridge, fixing and adjusting when necessary. Of course, there won’t be a need for the bridge soon, now that Amtrak is fixing the problem!
January 28th, 2010 at 1:42 am
What does the sign say? I can’t make out most of it.
January 28th, 2010 at 1:08 pm
@ anna- Well said by someone who is a perfect example of someone being a part of the problem, and not a part of a solution… must be easy to criticize at your keyboard there. These guys got off their a$$, made something with their hands with recycled products (KUDOS!) to benefit their community’s safety! And for that they deserve an “I HEART ASTORIA” people’s award!!!! (applause)
February 4th, 2010 at 9:17 am
I know of a couple of other places that could use some bridges. Contact me I’d love to help.
February 5th, 2010 at 12:16 am
http://newyork.craigslist.org/que/zip/1583001843.html It’s all yours! Jason put it up on craigslist! (see link!)
April 27th, 2010 at 3:55 pm
That’s pretty cool. One nit-pick, though. In order to read the plaque, you have to stand in the middle of Astoria Scum River.
May 9th, 2010 at 10:05 am
This is amazing!
But I wonder how come the leaky pipe has been left like that for twenty years.
Is it because people got used to it or the city didn’t listen to complaints?