Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge
Suspension bridge linking Staten Island and Brooklyn across the Narrows.
Last updated
via Wikipedia: Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge · see source
Where it is
Coordinates: 40°36′22″N 74°02′46″W (40.6060, -74.0460) · Open in OpenStreetMap
Coordinates and connected clubs: the infobox of Wikipedia: Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge (CC BY-SA 4.0). Map: drawn by Codexery from OpenStreetMap tiles.
The bridge carries Interstate 278 and is operated by MTA Bridges and Tunnels.[1] The Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge spans the Narrows, a mile-wide channel at the entrance to New York Harbor, linking the boroughs of Brooklyn and Staten Island.[2] When it opened in November 1964, the bridge had the world's longest suspended span, measuring 4,260 feet.[2][3]
Geography and history
Engineer David Steinman proposed a suspension bridge with a 4,620-foot main span in 1926, but military officials opposed it on wartime grounds.[4] The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, chaired by Robert Moses, recommended a bridge after 1946, finding it cheaper and faster than a tunnel.[4] The Army Corps of Engineers approved the bridge in 1949, finding its 228-foot clearance posed no navigation obstacle.[4] A fixed crossing over the Narrows was first discussed in 1888, and the 1898 consolidation of New York's five boroughs gave fresh momentum to the idea.[4]
The Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge was the final design of Othmar Ammann, who passed away in 1965.[5]
What the cited sources add
The Museum of the City of New York notes that engineers envisioned a great bridge at the Narrows as early as 1910, when steamships bearing immigrants passed through the channel.[2] The Adler account states that the bridge dictated the design of the Cunard liner Queen Mary 2, whose funnel was flattened so it could pass under the roadway with 13 feet of clearance at high tide.[2] The NYCRoads account states that the bridge's 228-foot clearance was approved by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1949.[4] The NYCRoads account also reports that some 12,000 men worked on the bridge, with about 1,000 on site during peak construction.[4]
The Joint Study of Arterial Facilities, conducted in the mid-1950s, estimated that the total cost for the bridge, including both decks and the approach roads, would be about $220,000,000.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Journal: Proceedings of the American Society of Civil Engineers", American Society of Civil Engineers, 1966, p. 4; "MTA Bridges and Tunnels Introduction", Metropolitan Transportation Authority, December 31, 2016 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Adler, "The History of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, 50 Years After Its Construction", November 2014. facts only, no text reused. smithsonianmag.com
- Wikipedia, "Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ingraham, "Verrazano Link Will Open on S.I.", The New York Times, January 27, 1964; Talese, "Verrazano Bridge Opened to Traffic", The New York Times, November 22, 1964; "Notables Salute the New Queen", New York World-Telegram, November 21, 1964, p. 2 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Verrazano-Narrows Bridge (I-278)", NYCRoads, August 13, 1959. facts only, no text reused. nycroads.com
- Wikipedia, "Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Othmar Ammann, Engineer, Is Dead; Designed Verrazano Bridge and Triborough Span", The New York Times, September 24, 1965; Barron, "Robert Moses: Master Planner Saw Verrazano-Narrows Bridge as Crucial Link for Commerce", Staten Island Advance, November 13, 2014; "Moses Sees Close Of Big-Bridge Era; Narrows And Throgs Neck To Be Last Here, He Says Moses Sees Close Of Big-Bridge Era", The New York Times, June 24, 1957 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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