It connects East Carson Street on the South Side with Fifth and Forbes Avenues going to Uptown, Oakland, and the Hill District, and was named in honor of the English city of Birmingham and also for the neighborhood it connects to, which was once called Birmingham and is now a part of the South Side.

Six days before the demolition, the Pittsburgh Police, Fire, and EMS responded to a construction worker who had pinned his leg near the top of the span.

After attempting unsuccessful rescues, they finally hoisted a surgeon to the site and were forced to amputate on-site to save the worker's life.

PennDOT indicated that one of the rockers that support bridge beams slipped [2] and "feels it is in the best interest of the traveling public to close the outbound lanes at this time and conduct a thorough inspection to ensure the integrity of the structure.

[3] In the early morning hours of Monday, March 3, 2008, the southbound deck reopened to serve traffic in both directions, cars, and buses only.