The Torontobrug is one of many bridges that span over the Amstel river. Literally, “Toronto-bridge”, it is named after the historical partnership and alliance between the two cities.

Incidentally, as you may know, Toronto and Amsterdam are both very important to my routes.

It comes as no surprise to me that the Torontoburg is one of the ugliest of the Amsterdam’s river crossings. It is a modernist, concrete mass, lacking the gezelligheid of the quaint, people sized bridges along the rest of the river (and indeed of the entire city). Instead, like many pieces of Toronto, it is an auto-oriented, 4 lane thoroughfare, that, though it includes bike lanes, lacks that delightful Amsterdam coziness. Because of this, the Torontobrug feels as though it is quite literally a piece of Toronto infrastructure inserted into central Amsterdam.

But, like Toronto, it is intriguing in its immensity, and I enjoy exploring it: passing over and beneath it while walking and by bike. It is nice to have a piece of my home here.

There is also I’ve discovered, an Amsterdam Bridge in Toronto. From the pictures of it, it looks as though Dutch design has similarly made its way into Toronto.

When I go back to Toronto, I look forward to visiting the Amsterdam Bridge to experience how a piece of Amsterdam feels from afar.

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Your Urban Geographer has taken the liberty to making the connection between Toronto and the Torontobrug even stronger! By QaRt coding the Torontobrug sign, there is now even more of an aesthetic and deep link between the bridge and it’s namesake city.