Saturday, January 22, 2022

1957,1998,2017 I-74 Walt Whitman Bridge over Delaware River at Philadelphia, PA

(Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; no B&T; Satellite)

Bridges Now and Then posted
Workers on the Walt Whitman Bridge over the Delaware River, c. 1956. (New Jersey Business Magazine)
Bill Campbell: When the Walt Whitman was being built, the name of the Delaware River Bridge was officially changed to Benjamin Franklin Bridge.
 
Delaware River Port Authority - DRPA posted
#FlashbackFriday pic of crews hard at work assembling the cable on the Walt Whitman Bridge in the mid-1950s. The WWB opened to traffic in May of 1957.proctor

Haddonfield United posted
Building the Walt Whitman Bridge

Delaware River Port Authority - DRPA posted
In the mid-1950s when the Walt Whitman Bridge was nearing its completion. The bridge officially opened to traffic on May 16, 1957.
Bridges Now and Then shared
 
Bridges Now and Then posted
Building the Walt Whitman Bridge, linking Philadelphia and New Jersey's Camden County, c. 1956. (DRPA)
James Torgeson shared
Steelwork by Bethlehem!

ENR 1957-03-28 via BridgeHunter

Bridges Now and Then posted
One more from the Battleships and Bridges File, USS New Jersey and the Walt Whitman Bridge, probably c. 1999 when she was brought to the Philadelphia/Camden area to become a museum. (No Photo Credit Found)

The bridge was designed by Othmar Ammann, and it is another example of towers without any extra bracing. At least the joints at the top look substantial.
Street View

Davide Bolsi, Sep 2018
[That is the Benjamin Franklin Bridge in the background.]
 
PhillyRoads

Type of bridge:
Construction started:
Opened to traffic:
Length of main span:
Length of each side span:
Length, anchorage to anchorage:
Total length of bridge and approaches:
Width of bridge:
Width of roadway:
Number of traffic lanes:
Height of towers above mean high water:
Clearance at center above mean high water:
Steel used in towers and suspended structure:
Weight suspended from cables:
Number of cables:
Length of each of two cables:
Diameter of each of two cables:
Total number of wires per cable:
Foundation type:
Cost of original structure:

Suspension
August 1, 1953
May 16, 1957
2,000 feet (609.6 meters)
770 feet (234.7 meters)
3,540 feet (1,079.0 meters)
11,981 feet (3,651.8 meters)
92 feet (28.0 meters)
83 feet (25.3 meters)
7 lanes
378 feet (115.2 meters)
150 feet (45.7 meters)
57,674 tons (52,321 metric tons)
36,500 tons (33,112 metric tons)
2 cables
3,845 feet (1,281.7 meters)
23 1/8 inches (58.7 centimeters)
18,666 wires
Caisson
$90,000,000

 
Radar Rob Aerial posted
Walt Whitman Bridge!

As is true for other large bridges, the approach spans are non-trivial bridges in their own right.
Street View

ENR 1957-08005 via BridgeHunter

ENR 1958-03-13 via BridgeHunter

Battleship New Jersey is returning to its permanent mooring after spending a couple of months in drydock. The tugboats are providing the propulsion. The Navy does not allow museum ships to fire up their boilers.
Delaware River Port Authority - DRPA posted
Welcome home, Battleship New Jersey!
Bridges Now and Then shared
WooHoo!! BZ to all involved!

No comments:

Post a Comment