Castleton Bridge

Castleton-on-Hudson Bridge

Foreground: Alfred H. Smith Memorial Bridge; Background: Castleton Bridge. Seen from the west shore, south of the bridges.
Carries New York State Thruway
Crosses Hudson River
Locale Castleton-on-Hudson, New York
Maintained by NYSTA
Design Cantilever
Opened May 26, 1959; 52 years ago (1959-05-26)
Toll $1.05 (both directions)

The Castleton Bridge is a cantilever truss bridge over the Hudson River that carries the Berkshire Connector of the New York State Thruway. This bridge is also sometimes called the Castleton-on-Hudson Bridge and is situated in close proximity to the Alfred H. Smith Memorial Bridge, which is used by rail traffic.

The Castleton Bridge is located on the longest section of the New York State Thruway that does not have an Interstate Highway designation, between interchanges 21A (Interstate 87) and B1 (Interstate 90). There is a $0.60 toll each way to cross this bridge. It is not collected at a separate toll barrier, but is rather collected as part of the Thruway's ticketed toll system. It costs at least $1.05 to cross ($1.00 with an E-ZPass discount), by traveling between Interchange 22 and Interchange B1 on the Thruway. It is the northernmost road bridge on the Hudson River with a toll and is the only bridge with a toll in both directions; every bridge south of this has an eastbound-only toll.

History

The bridge was built in the late 1950s, and opened May 26, 1959 to coincide with the opening of the final 6-mile segment of the New York State Thruway's Berkshire Section connecting to the Massachusetts Turnpike.[1]

In May 2007, the bridge carried 14,500 vehicles per day. NYSDOT, FHWA and NYSTA have discussed potential strategies to divert peak hour traffic traveling along Interstate 90 between Interchange 24 and Interchange B1 to the Castleton Bridge to reduce traffic volumes on the Patroon Island Bridge in Albany.[2]

See also

References