South Park Bridge
| South Park Bridge | |
|---|---|
|
South Park Bridge seen from South Park in 2007 | |
| Crosses | Duwamish River |
| Locale | South Park, Seattle, Washington |
| Maintained by | King County, Washington |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Double-leaf bascule |
| Total length | 1,285 feet (392 m)[1] |
| Longest span | Bascule span: 190 feet (58 m) (two 95-foot leaves)[1] |
| History | |
| Construction begin | 1929 |
| Opened |
1931 |
|
14th Avenue South Bridge | |
| Location |
Spans Duwamish River, Seattle, Washington |
| Coordinates | 47°31′45.5″N 122°18′50.7″W / 47.529306°N 122.314083°WCoordinates: 47°31′45.5″N 122°18′50.7″W / 47.529306°N 122.314083°W |
| Built | 1931 (bascule section replaced in 2013) |
| Architectural style | Scherzer Rolling Lift Bascule |
| Governing body | King County |
| MPS | Historic Bridges/Tunnels in Washington State TR |
| NRHP Reference # | 82004228[2] |
| Added to NRHP | July 16, 1982 |
The South Park Bridge (also called the 14th/16th Avenue South Bridge) is a Scherzer Rolling Lift double-leaf bascule bridge in Seattle, Washington, United States, constructed in 1929–31. It carries automobile traffic over the Duwamish River[3] near Boeing Field, just outside the city limits of Seattle. It was named for the nearby South Park neighborhood of Seattle. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, as the 14th Avenue South Bridge. Due to safety concerns, the bridge was closed to traffic on June 30, 2010, and its bascule draw-span leaves were removed in August 2010, while county officials worked to secure funds for replacement of the draw span. Work to replace the bridge began in May 2011, and the bridge reopened to traffic on June 30, 2014, ending a four-year closure.
Replacement
The bridge is operated by the King County government. Prior to its 2010 closure for rebuilding, about 20,000 vehicles used the bridge daily, and it was a main connection to South Park's main business district.[4]
The bridge was already in poor condition in 2001, when it was further damaged by the Nisqually earthquake. In 2002, King County inspectors gave the bridge a score of 6 out of a possible 100, per Federal Highway Administration criteria, and the rating later fell to as low as 4.[5][6] This compares to a score of 50 for the I-35W Mississippi River bridge, which collapsed in August 2007.
Due to lack of county, state and federal funding for a proposed replacement project, the South Park Bridge closed on June 30, 2010, at 7:00 p.m.[7] Although plans to build a new bridge were ready, the project did not receive a $99 million federal TIGER I grant in early 2010.[8] However, in the same month that the bridge closed, King County secured $10 million toward the replacement of bridge,[9] and in August 2010, the County submitted a grant application for $36.2 million in federal funds from the second round of federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER II) grants.[10] Dismantling of the bridge began in late August 2010, with removal of the lift span sections,[11] and the outlook for the proposed replacement project remained unclear.
On October 15, 2010, it was announced that the South Park Bridge had been awarded $34 million in TIGER II financing, filling the funding gap and allowing work to replace the bridge to move forward.[12]
The rebuilding project began in May 2011.[13][14]
The newly completed South Park Bridge officially opened to traffic on June 30, 2014. A ceremonial grand opening event took place on June 29, 2014.[15]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lisa Soderberg (June 1980). "Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation (OAHP) Inventory: 14th Avenue South Bridge" (pdf). National Park Service.
- ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2010-07-09.
- ↑ King County 2005 Bridge Report, p. 24. Accessed online 2009-04-28.
- ↑ Gutierrez, Scott (2009-12-20). "Seattle Transportation Watch". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
- ↑ John Iwasaki (November 3, 2005). County looking at five plans to fix or replace South Park Bridge, Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Accessed online 2009-04-27.
- ↑ Keith Ervin (July 6, 2006). "South Park Bridge on its last legs". Seattle Times. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
- ↑ South Park Bridge closure page.
- ↑ South Park Bridge funding rejected West Seattle Herald, 2010-02-17
- ↑ Ervin, Keith (June 25, 2010). "South Park Bridge funding ramps up quickly with added $10 million grant". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ↑ Funding for the new South Park Bridge King County, South Park Bridge, 2010-07-07
- ↑ Seattle Times Staff (August 31, 2010). "Spans removed from South Park bridge". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ↑ Goldsmith, Steven (October 15, 2010). "Murray: Final $34M found for South Park Bridge". Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ↑ Gutierrez, Scott (May 5, 2011). "South Park celebrates groundbreaking on new bridge". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ↑ "Breaking of giant piñata marks start of construction for new South Park Bridge". King County Transportation News Center. May 5, 2011. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ↑ "South Park Bridge Opening". King County Transportation. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to South Park Bridge. |
- South Park Bridge project page
- South Park Bridge closure page
- SOUTH PARK BRIDGE PROJECT Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Section 4(f) Evaluation EXECUTIVE SUMMARY, U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Washington State Department of Transportation, and King County Department of Transportation, September 2005
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