The demolition of one of Perth's most iconic pieces of infrastructure has begun.
Locals and train enthusiasts alike braced the city's dreary weather to say their final farewells to the infamous Bayswater bridge on Saturday morning.
The 100-year-old bridge caught many inattentive truck drivers off guard over the years, with hundreds of tall vehicles crashing into it or getting stuck under it.
It had a strong social media following and a website has kept record of each time a vehicle didn't quite make the clearance
The 3.8 metre bridge is being replaced by a 4.8m successor as part of the new Bayswater train station, which is the beginning of the much-anticipated Morley-Ellenbrook line.
It will make travelling easier in Perth's north-east by connecting the Midland, Morley-Ellenbrook and Forrestfield-Airport lines.
'War scars on the bridge'
Watching on from Whatley Crescent, train enthusiast content creator Riley said he had to be there for the moment the bridge was brought down.
"It's very sad that it's going. It's probably the most iconic thing on the Transperth network," Riley said.
"You can see the war scars on the bridge."
Riley was part of the last train service to go through the old Bayswater Station in March and said he would be on the first service when it was up and running again.
"It had to go at some point," he said.
'Bye bye bridge'
Bayswater local Natalie said it was a sad moment for the suburb.
"Many a truck got stuck underneath, which was very exciting to see," she said.
"The new bridge is amazing but that little, old bridge — it's a little bit sad.
"Bye bye bridge. It was lovely knowing you all these years."
Caroline grew up in Bayswater and her mum owned a haberdashery store on the corner. She spent many afternoons in the store, helping her mum and doing homework.
"It's a very emotional time for me," she said, choking back tears.
"How can a bridge affect your life so much? I'm sad to see it go. It's closing a chapter of my life. It's a very sentimental time."
Such is the impact the bridge has had on Perth, even the Premier Mark McGowan's office posted a farewell tribute to it on social media on Friday, to the music of the popular funeral song Wind Beneath My Wings.
Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said parts of the bridge would be kept, so the public could take pictures with it, and a public art installation was being designed, with more details to come soon.
"We know the Bayswater bridge has been a scene and a topic of much conversation," she said.
"Many of the [traffic] signs will be donated to the City of Bayswater, plus local historical societies, and there's also a cafe called 3.8 Baysie, which will be getting one of the key signs.
"The removal ends the life of the most-talked-about bridge in Western Australia's history,"
Ms Saffioti thanked the Bayswater community for their patience while significant works in the area were being done.
By her count, just in the past six years, more than 60 trucks had either crashed into or been stuck under the bridge, and that it was just 47 days since the last incident.
The Midland and airport lines are closed until April 26 while round-the-clock work is underway, which includes the new Bayswater Station and a stretch of track.
Replacement shuttle buses are operating on affected lines.
