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Wednesday, August 14, 2013

New York City's Most Beautiful Bridges

By Shawn Pratten


When navigating between New York's five neighborhoods (called boroughs), making your way over or under the water at some specific point is going to be unavoidable. This is why the city has a bunch of widely known and historic bridges that connect the boroughs together.

Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is likely the most famous of all NY bridges and connects the borough of Manhattan and Brooklyn. When the bridge opened in 1883, it was at the time, the longest suspension bridge in the world. It was 1,597 feet, and is currently listed as a certified historic monument. It was German engineer John Roebling who designed the bridge in the late 1860s, although he wretchedly did not survive to see it completed. Roebling's son took control of the Brooklyn bridge project in his father's place.

Queensboro Bridge

One of most busy bridges in N. Y is the Queensboro bridge, which connects Queens to Manhattan. This five-span cantilever bridge sees around 180,000 motorists cross annually, together with thousands of pedestrians and cycle riders. Built between 1901 and 1909, it was a partnership between engineer Gustav Lindenthal and designer Henry Hornbostel. Comprising of seventy-five thousand tons of steel, the project cost $18 million and was at one previous point the longest cantilever bridge in the U.S.

Manhattan Bridge

Most Big Apple Bridges are suspension bridges and the Manhattan bridge is not an exception. Opened in 1909, it connects Manhattan to Brooklyn and spans 1,470 feet across the East Stream. Costing $31 million, the bridge was in the beginning designed for trains and streetcars, but auto lanes replaced the street cars in the 1940s. The entrance arches to the bridge were famously influenced by the Porte St. Dennis in Paris and designed by Carrere and Hastings, the firm behind the Long Island Public Library.

Williamsburg Bridge

Also spanning between Brooklyn and Manhattan, the Williamsburg Bridge is among the most busy bridges in N. Y. Over 140,000 motorists use the bridge each year together with hundreds of cyclists and walkers. When it opened in 1903 it said the title of longest suspension bridge span in the world at 1,600 feet, just beating out the Brooklyn Bridge. Like the Queensboro Bridge, Williamsburg was designed by Lindenthal.

George Washington Bridge

The George Washington Bridge connects Long Island to New Jersey across the Hudson River. When it was opened in 1931 the bridge was twice as long as any other suspension bridge of the time at 4,760 feet. Today the bridge sees over 52 million cars cross its span every year. A man named Othmar Ammann, a Swiss architect, who designed the bridge after a century-long search for an appropriate design.




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