List of Seattle bridges

The city of Seattle has multiple bridges that are significant due to their function, engineering, or historical status. Downtown Seattle was built on an isthmus between Lake Washington and Elliot Bay. Another body of water, Lake Union, is just north of the downtown area. The lakes are connected to Puget Sound by the canals and locks that make up the Lake Washington Ship Canal.[1]

Along with the freeway spans of Interstate 5 and State Route 99, four double-leaf bascule bridges cross the ship canal. These four bridges were opened between 1917 and 1930. The easternmost—the Montlake and University bridges—connect neighborhoods south of the canal to the University District. The Fremont Bridge is one of the most raised bridges in the world due to its clearance over the water of only 30 feet (9.1 m).[2] The westernmost span crossing the ship canal is the Ballard Bridge.[3]

The Seattle-area floating bridges that carry Interstate 90 and State Route 520 across Lake Washington to the Eastside suburbs remain among the world's relatively few permanent floating pontoon structures.[4] The Evergreen Point Floating Bridge is the longest floating bridge in the world, but is due to be replaced.[5] The Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge was already replaced after the original span sunk in 1990 when water filled an open maintenance hatch during refurbishing. Age and the 2001 Nisqually earthquake have damaged several other spans. The risk of future earthquakes has increased the need to replace already deteriorated bridges in the city, such as the Alaskan Way Viaduct and the Magnolia Bridge.[6]

The neighborhoods that make up West Seattle are on a peninsula separated from downtown by the Duwamish River. In the 1970s, residents grew wary of congestion that made the previous connection the second busiest road in the state. The bridge was left inoperable after being hit by a freighter in 1978, and it was replaced in 1984 by the West Seattle Bridge.[7] The area is also serviced by the Spokane Street Bridge. Built in 1991, it is the world's first and only hydraulically-operated concrete double-leaf swing bridge.[8]

Key: Year opened
Bold: Listed in the National Register of Historic Places[9]
Italics: Listed as a city landmark[10]
Name
(Alternative name in parenthesis)		 Image Year opened Type Length Spans Carries Coordinates
Alaskan Way Viaduct 1954[11] Viaduct &1000000000001160000000011,600 ft (3,500 m)[11] Central Waterfront State Route 99
Arboretum Sewer Trestle 1910 Lake Washington Boulevard E Sewer and a foot path
Ballard Bridge
(15th Avenue Bridge)		 1917[12] Bascule &100000000000028540000002,854 ft (870 m)[13] Salmon Bay 15th Avenue NW
Cowen Park Bridge 1936 Arch &10000000000000358000000358 ft (109 m) A ravine in Cowen Park 15th Avenue NE[14]
First Avenue South Bridge 1956[lower-alpha 1] Bascule &10000000000000300000000300 ft (91 m)[16] Duwamish River State Route 99
Fremont Bridge 1917[lower-alpha 2] Bascule &10000000000000502000000502 ft (153 m) Fremont Cut Road connecting Fremont Avenue N and 4th Avenue N
George Washington Memorial Bridge
(Aurora Bridge)[lower-alpha 3]		 1932[16] Cantilever and truss &100000000000029450000002,945 ft (898 m)[18] Lake Union State Route 99
Governor Albert D. Rosellini Bridge
(Evergreen Point Floating Bridge)[lower-alpha 4]		 1963[16] Floating pontoon &100000000000075780000007,578 ft (2,310 m)[16] Lake Washington State Route 520
Homer M. Hadley Memorial Bridge
(Third Lake Washington Bridge)		 1989[16] Floating pontoon &100000000000058110000005,811 ft (1,771 m)[16] Lake Washington Interstate 90
Jeanette Williams Memorial Bridge
(West Seattle Bridge)[lower-alpha 5]		 1984[21] Cantilever &100000000000026070000002,607 ft(705 m)[20] Duwamish River Road connecting Fauntleroy Way SW and the Spokane Street Viaduct
Jose P. Rizal Bridge
(12th Avenue South Bridge)[lower-alpha 1]		 1911[23] Truss arch &10000000000000420000000420 ft (130 m)[23] S Dearborn Street and Interstate 90 12th Avenue S
Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge 1993[lower-alpha 6] Floating pontoon &100000000000066200000006,620 ft (2,020 m)[16] Lake Washington Interstate 90
Magnolia Bridge 1930 Truss &10000000000000500000000500 ft (150 m) Filled-in tidelands of Smith Cove W Garfield Street
Montlake Bridge 1925[24] Bascule &10000000000000344000000344 ft (105 m)[24] Lake Washington Ship Canal State Route 513
North Queen Anne Drive Bridge 1936 Arch &10000000000000238000000238 ft (73 m) Wolf Creek N Queen Anne Drive
Salmon Bay Bridge 1914 Bascule and truss &10000000000000200000000200 ft (61 m)[25] Salmon Bay BNSF Railway
Ship Canal Bridge 1962 Truss &100000000000044290000004,429 ft (1,350 m)[26] Portage Bay Interstate 5
Schmitz Park Bridge 1936 Rigid frame &10000000000000175000000175 ft (53 m)[8] A ravine in Schmitz Park SW Admiral Way
Spokane Street Bridge 1991[13] Swing &10000000000000480000000480 ft (150 m)[13] Duwamish River SW Spokane Street
20th Avenue NE Bridge
(Ravenna Park Bridge)		 1913 Arch &10000000000000354000000354 ft (108 m)[8] A ravine in Ravenna Park 20th Avenue NE (pedestrian access only)
University Bridge 1919[lower-alpha 7] Bascule &10000000000000218000000218 ft (66 m) Portage Bay Eastlake Avenue NE

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b A parallel span was built in 1996; the approaches to the original span were partially demolished and the structure was retrofitted between 1996 and 1998.[15]
  2. ^ The city rebuilt the approaches at each end of the bridge between 2006 and 2007[17]
  3. ^ Commonly known as the "Aurora Bridge" but the structure was named after George Washington.[18]
  4. ^ Originally called the "Evergreen Point Floating Bridge" but renamed in honor of Albert Rosellini.[19]
  5. ^ Known as the "West Seattle Bridge" but the span was renamed for a city council member in 2009.[20]
  6. ^ All but the approaches replace the original bridge, which opened in 1949 and sank in 1990.[16]
  7. ^ Remodeled and dedicated in 1933.[13]

References

  1. ^ Insiders' Guide to Seattle. Insiders Guides. 2010. p. 17. ISBN 9780762755448. 
  2. ^ Posada, Janice (August 21, 1995). "The People Who Operate Seattle's Movable Bridges Can Attest to the Ups and Downs of Solitary Work Tender Times". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. http://www.seattlepi.com/archives/1995/9508210054.asp. Retrieved February 27, 2011. 
  3. ^ Ohlsen, Becky (2008). Seattle. Lonely Planet. p. 44. ISBN 9781740598347. 
  4. ^ Petroski, Henry (2005). Pushing the limits : new adventures in engineering. Knopf. p. 40. ISBN 9781400040513. 
  5. ^ Gaudette, Karen (April 26, 2005). "DOT on 520 project: "the sooner the better"". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002253196_520future26e.html. Retrieved February 22, 2011. 
  6. ^ "Demolition of the Alaskan Way Viaduct begins". Seattle Post-Inteligencer. February 18, 2011. http://blog.seattlepi.com/transportation/2011/02/18/demolition-of-the-alaskan-way-viaduct-starts-tonight/. Retrieved February 27, 2011. 
  7. ^ Southwest Seattle Historical Society, Log House Museum (2010). Images of America West Seattle. Arcadia Publishing. p. 20. ISBN 9780738581330. 
  8. ^ a b c Holstine, Craig; Hobbs, Richard (2005). Spanning Washington: Historic Highway Bridges of the Evergreen State. Washington State University Press. ISBN 9780874222814. 
  9. ^ National Register of Historic Places; Annual Listing of Historic Properties (Part II). National Park Service. March 1, 1983. p. 8669. http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/listings/Weekly_List_FR-March-1-1983-listingyear1982.pdf. 
  10. ^ "Landmarks and Designation". City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods. http://www.cityofseattle.net/neighborhoods/preservation/landmarks_listing.htm. Retrieved February 28, 2011. 
  11. ^ a b Ralph, Thomas (September 19, 2005). "Who'll be to blame if viaduct, 520 bridge collapse?". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002504687_viaductmorality19m.html. Retrieved February 3, 2011. 
  12. ^ Dorpat, Paul (August 12, 2001). "A Bridge Loses Track". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/pacificnw/2001/0812/nowthen.html. Retrieved February 3, 2011. 
  13. ^ a b c d "Bridges and Roadway Structures". City of Seattle Department of Transportation. http://www.cityofseattle.net/transportation/bridges.htm. Retrieved February 3, 2011. 
  14. ^ Kreisman, Lawrence (1999). Made To Last: Historic Preservation in Seattle and King County. Historic Seattle Preservation Foundation in association with the University of Washington Press. p. 69. ISBN 978-0295978468. 
  15. ^ "1st Avenue S. Bridge". Washington Sate Department of Transportation. http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Northwest/king/1stAvesBridge. Retrieved February 3, 2011. 
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2008. World Almanac Books. 2008. pp. 737–739. ISBN 978-1-60057-072-8. 
  17. ^ Gilore, Susan (May 22, 2006). "Project will keep bus traffic off bridge in Fremont". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003004638_fremontbridge19m.html. Retrieved February 22, 2011. 
  18. ^ a b Gilore, Susan (July 15, 2008). "3 designs released for fence on Aurora Bridge". The Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008051765_aurora15m0.html. Retrieved February 22, 2010. 
  19. ^ "Weekly roundup of facts, figures and forecasts". The Seattle Times. August 25, 2004. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/eastsidenews/2002014877_almanac25e.html. Retrieved July 11, 2011. 
  20. ^ a b "West Seattle Bridge honors Jeanette Williams". West Seattle Herald. October 30, 2009. 
  21. ^ "The Northwest Today". The Register-Guard: p. 5A. July 8, 1984. 
  22. ^ Long, Priscilla (December 23, 2007). "Seattle's 12th Avenue South (Dearborn Street) Bridge is built in 1911". HistoryLink.org Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History. 
  23. ^ a b "View From on High". City of Seattle Department of Transportation. August 24, 2010. http://sdotblog.seattle.gov/2010/08/24/view-from-on-high/. Retrieved February 27, 2011. 
  24. ^ a b Gelula, Melisse (2002). Fodor's Cityguide Seattle. Fodor's Travel Publications. p. 171. ISBN 9780676901948. 
  25. ^ The Encyclopedia Americana: A Library of Universal Knowledge, Volume 4. Encyclopedia Americana Corporation. 1918. p. 504. 
  26. ^ Dorpat, Paul; McCoy, Genevieve (1998). Building Washington: A History of Washington State Public Works. Tartu Publications. p. 131. ISBN 9780961435790. 
Bridges and tunnels in and around Seattle
Road bridges:
Rail bridges/trestles:
Tunnels: