The Raymond-Poincaré bridge is counted among the bridges of Lyon even if it is in fact outside the city limit: on the right bank, we are in Caluire-et-Cuire, on the left bank in Villeurbanne. This bridge was only built late, in connection with the establishment of the ring road initiated by the President of the General Council Laurent Bonnevay, of which it bears the name today.
In 1937, work began on a classic concrete structure resting on four piers. From the start, it was dedicated to Raymond Poincaré, President of the Republic from 1913 to 1921, President of the Council from 1926 to 1929, a period during which he had to devalue the franc, which became the Poincaré franc.
On February 6, 1939, he was baptized Pont Raymond-Poincaré. In 1940, work on the bridge resumed, but the bridge was destroyed by the offensive of German forces. The war slows down the work but it starts again immediately until the total destruction of the arches dynamited by the Germans before their retreat.
The bridge was rebuilt in 1950. Following a control inspection, cracks were discovered in the concrete of the bridge, which was closed to traffic. Work resumed and the bridge was opened in 1954, but 10 years later, cracks appeared above the railway tracks. It was replaced by a temporary iron bridge which remained in place until the bridge was reopened in its current state in 1989. Even more recently, it has been widened and modified at both ends to connect it to the interchange of the North ring road and by a gigantic roundabout at Boulevard Laurent-Bonnevay.
It is still very busy today, but the northern ring road, which is free when crossing the Rhône, has relieved it of some of its traffic.