Peace Bridge
Coordinates: 42 ° 54 ′ 25 ″ N , 78 ° 54 ′ 20 ″ W.
| Peace Bridge | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Crossing of | Niagara River | |
| place | Fort Erie , Ontario / Buffalo , New York | |
| Entertained by | Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority (Peace Bridge Authority) | |
| construction | Truss bridge and arch bridge | |
| overall length | 1769 m | |
| start of building | 1925 | |
| completion | 1927 | |
| opening | June 1, 1927 | |
| toll | $ 3.00 ($ 2.70 with E-ZPass ) | |
| location | ||
|
||
The Peace Bridge ( German : Friedensbrücke ) is a road bridge that crosses the border between the United States and Canada at the eastern end of Lake Erie , about 30 km upstream from Niagara Falls . It connects the cities of Buffalo in the US state of New York and Fort Erie in the Canadian province of Ontario . It is operated and maintained by the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority .
overview
The structure consists of five arches over the Niagara River and a truss span over the Black Rock Canal on the US side of the river. The total length is 1769 m. The name of the bridge evokes a century of peace between the United States and Canada. The construction was approved on August 6, 1925 by the International Joint Commission .
The bridge was built as a road bridge that should meet the needs of pedestrians and motor vehicles, as they could not use the International Railway Bridge , built in 1873 .
One of the biggest obstacles in the construction was the strong current of the river, which here is between 12 and 19 km / h. Construction began in 1925 and was finished in spring 1927. It was opened to the public on June 1, 1927.
The official opening ceremony didn't take place until two months later. Around 100,000 visitors took part in the celebrations.
Public dignitaries who attended the ceremony included Edward, Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII), Prince Albert, Duke of York (later George VI), Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King , British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin , US Vice President Charles Gates Dawes , US Secretary of State Frank Billings Kellogg , New York Governor Al Smith and the Prime Minister of Ontario Howard Ferguson .
Upon opening, Buffalo became the main crossing point between the United States and Canada. At the time, it was the only vehicle bridge between Niagara Falls and Minnesota . Even today this border crossing is one of the most important between the two countries, around four thousand trucks cross the border here every day.
The Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority announced plans to build a second bridge on the southern side of the existing link in 1997. This should take up the growing traffic. Legal problems, but also with regard to the design and financing, have prevented the start of construction so far. A cable-stayed bridge was originally proposed. However, this was rejected because it was feared that endangered bird species could get caught in the ropes.
Other nearby bridges between Canada and the United States include the Rainbow Bridge , Queenston-Lewiston Bridge, and the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge . The Queenston-Lewiston Bridge and the Peace Bridge are the only border crossings that are approved for heavy goods traffic .
On the US side, Interstate 190 has a direct northbound exit (Exit 9) to the Peace Bridge. This is called Ft. Signposted for Erie Can , although the bridge is actually Baird Drive . On the Canadian side, the Queen Elizabeth Way begins immediately after customs clearance .
After a new toll collection system was installed on the Canadian side in 2005, the Peace Bridge became the first (and so far only) toll facility outside the United States to be affiliated with the E-ZPass system .
Postage stamps
On August 4, 1977, the Canadian and United States Postal Services issued a joint issue of a postage stamp to mark the bridge's fiftieth anniversary . What is completely unusual for such joint editions is that the two designs are completely different.
Web links
- Peace Bridge. In: Structurae
- Peace Bridge Authority (English)
- Historic Niagara Digital Collections (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.peacebridge.com/news.php?action=viewStory&id=21 ( Memento from February 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ PDF at www.peacebridgex.com ( Memento of the original dated July 5, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ [1] ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
|
Upstream - |
Crossing the Niagara River |
Downriver International Railway Bridge |