Bridges of New York City

The Brooklyn Bridge spans the East River, connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan. It was designed by John Augustus Roebling, and opened May 24, 1883.

The Brooklyn Bridge is a suspension bridge; one of the oldest in the United States. It is 5989 feet long and 85 feet wide, with the longest span being 1595.5 feet. While it has in the past carried streetcars and elevated trains, it currently accomodates only motor vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles. it has an annual average daily traffic of 145,000 vehicles.

You can read more about the Brooklyn bridge on the Brooklyn Bridge squidoo lens.

The Manhattan Bridge is one of three suspension bridges that cross the East River in New York City. It connects Brooklyn with Lower Manhattan.

The Manhattan Bridge was designed and built by Ralph Modjeski, a Polish bridge engineer. The cables were designed by Leon Moisseiff. It opened December 31, 1909.

The bridge is 6855 feet long, with its longest span being 1470 feet. The bridge's roadway has two levels with a total of 7 lanes for motor vehicles, 4 tracks for subway trains, while also accomodating bicycles and pedestrians. It has an annual average daily traffic of 80,000 vehicles.

The Williamsburg Bridge connects lower Manhattan with the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn across the East River. It is a suspension bridge in its center span, with the side approaches being cantilevered and drawing no support from the cables.

The Williamsburg Bridge was designed by Henry Hornbostel, with Leffert L. Buck as chief engineer. It opened December 19, 1903, and was at that time the longest suspension bridge span on earth.

The bridge is 7308 feet long and 118 feet wide, with its llongest span being 1600 feet. It accomodates 8 lanes of motor vehicle traffic, two subway tracks, pedestrians, and bicycles. It has an annual average daily traffic of 110,000 vehicles.

The Queensboro Bridge is also known as the 59th Street Bridge. It crosses the East River connecting Queens with Manhattan, passing over Roosevelt Island.

The Queensboro Bridge is a double decked cantilever bridge. The design of the bridge was a collaboration between Gustav Lindenthal, Henry Hornbostel, and Leffert L. Buck. It was opened March 30, 1909.

The bridge is 3724.5 feet long and 100 feet wide. It carries 9 lanes of traffic in addition to pedestrians and bicyclists. It has an annual average daily traffic of 192,000 vehicles.

The Verrazano Narrows Bridge connects Staten Island and Brooklyn with New York City across the East River. It is a double decked suspension bridge.

The Verrazano Narrows Bridge was designed and engineered by Othmar Amann. Its upper level opened November 21, 1964, and its lower level opened June 28, 1969.

The bridge is 13,700 feet long, with a central span of 4260 feet. It carries 12 lanes of motor vehicle traffic; six on the upper deck and six on the lower deck. It has an annual average daily traffic of 194,000 vehicles.

The George Washington Bridge crosses the Hudson River, connecting Manhattan with Fort Lee, New Jersey. It is a suspension bridge with the fourth longest span in the United States.

The George Washington Bridge was designed by Cass Gilbert, with Othmar Ammann as chief engineer. It was dedicated October 24, 1931. The plans had anticipated the possible need for a second level below. That was added and opened on August 29, 1962.

The bridge is 4760 feet long and 119 feet wide. It carries 14 lanes of traffic, and accomodates pedestrians and bicycles as well. It has an annual average daily traffic of 295,649 vehicles.

The Triborough Bridge was officially renamed the Robert F. Kennedy bridge in 2008, although most people still refer to it as the Triborough Bridge. It is actually a series of three bridges connecting the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens, crossing over Wards and Randall's Island, which are now consolidated.

The Triborough Bridge's original plans for a double decked bridge were redesigned by Othmar Ammann to save money. The bridge was opened July 11, 1936.

The bridge employs suspension, lift, and truss bridge structures. The suspension span is 2,780 feet long, the lift span is 770 feet long, and the truss span is 1600 feet long. The bridge carries 8 lanes of motor vehicle traffic. It has an annual average daily traffic of 164,400 vehicles on the suspension span, 95,600 on the lift span, and 117,900 on the truss span.

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