New River Gorge Bridge
Coordinates: 38 ° 4 ′ 8 ″ N , 81 ° 4 ′ 55 ″ W.
 New River Gorge Bridge
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| Convicted | US Highway 19 ( four lanes with a central barrier) ("Mountaineer Expressway") | |
| Subjugated | New River , CSX rail line | |
| place | Fayetteville , West Virginia | |
| Entertained by | West Virginia Department of Transportation | |
| construction | Arch bridge | |
| overall length | 924 m | |
| width | 21.1 m | |
| Longest span | 518 m | |
| Clear height | 267 m | |
| vehicles per day | 17,000 | |
| opening | October 22, 1977 | |
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The New River Gorge Bridge is a steel arch bridge over the New River near Fayetteville , West Virginia . With an arch span of 518 meters, it was the largest arch bridge in the world from its completion in 1977 to the completion of the Beipanjiang Railway Bridge in 2001. At 267 meters above ground, it is the second-highest arch bridge in the USA after the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, which was completed in 2010, and generally the third-highest bridge in the country.
construction
The crossing of the gorge of the New River, a tributary of the Ohio River , was very laborious, at the bottom of the gorge a simple steel truss bridge led over the river, the descent into the valley was via winding mountain roads and was very time consuming. As part of the expansion of US Highway 19 , it was decided in the early 1970s to build a bridge over the entire width of the valley. In June 1974 the first construction steps took place , the first steel parts of the arch were assembled using a cable crane running over the gorge . On October 22, 1977 the bridge was completed and opened to traffic.
construction
The New River Gorge Bridge is a steel arch bridge made of corrosion-resistant Cor-Ten steel with an arch under the roadway. The half-timbered arch with a total weight of 9,555.377 tons spans 518 meters over the valley, the total length of the bridge is 924 meters. A total of 19,958 tons of steel and the same amount of concrete were used in the bridge. Around 17,000 vehicles roll along the 21 meter wide lane every day. The cost of building the bridge was $ 37 million.
particularities
Because of its height, the bridge is very popular with base jumpers . On the third weekend in October, the so-called "Bridge Day" takes place, during which the bridge is closed to traffic. During Bridge Day, parachute jumps from the bridge are allowed, as well as rappelling demonstrations. After an accident in 1993, bungee jumps from the bridge were prohibited.
So far, three base jumpers have died while jumping from the bridge, the most recent being Brian Lee Schubert on October 21, 2006 when his parachute did not open.
Web links
- Detailed description ( Memento of February 5, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- Website Bridge Day (Engl.)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b NEW RIVER GORGE BRIDGE ( Memento from February 5, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), as of August 4, 2007
- ↑ nps.gov , as of August 4, 2007
- ↑ Huntington News, October 22, 2006 ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. As of August 4, 2007
