Million Dollar Bridge (Maine)

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Million Dollar Bridge
The Million Dollar Bridge behind the then-under-construction Casco Bay Bridge.
Carries	Motor vehicles and pedestrians
Crosses	Fore River
Locale	Portland, Maine
Design	Girder Bascule
Clearance below	24 feet (7.3 meters)
AADT	30,000 vehicles per day
Opening date	1916
Destruction date	1998
Maps and aerial photos

The Million Dollar Bridge was a bascule bridge built in 1916 which carried traffic on Route 77 over the Fore River in Maine between Portland and South Portland.

Permits to construct the Million Dollar Bridge were issued by the Secretary of War in 1893. The bridge was designed in 1914 and opened to traffic in 1916. The bascule span provided a horizontal clearance of 100 ft (30.5 m). Originally owned by Cumberland County, the bridge was transferred to the Maine Department of Transportation in 1959.

In 1993, construction began on the higher Casco Bay Bridge; the new bridge is on a new alignment just east of the original bridge, and is also a bascule bridge. During construction of the new bridge, the Million Dollar Bridge was hit by the Liberian Tankship Julie N. on September 27, 1996, and emergency repairs were made. The Casco Bay Bridge opened in 1997.