Blue Water Bridge Postcard

The Blue Water Bridge is a twin-span bridge that spans the St. Clair River between Port Huron, Michigan and Point Edward, Ontario (near Sarnia, Ontario). The Blue Water Bridge connects with Highway 402 in Ontario and with both Interstate 69 and Interstate 94 in Michigan. The original span is a cantilever truss bridge and the second span is a continuous tied arch bridge.

Blue Water Bridge Postcard(PH Wish from Sarah Konichek)

The first bridge is a cantilever truss with a total length of 6,178 feet (1,883 m). The main span is 871 feet (265 m). The second bridge is a continuous tied arch with a total length of 6,109 feet (1,862 m). The main span is 922 feet (281 m). The twinning project was a combined effort between Modjeski & Masters - U.S Engineers and Buckland & Taylor Ltd. - Canadian Engineers.

The first bridge was opened to traffic on October 10, 1938. The lead engineer was Ralph Modjeski. A second three-lane bridge, just south of the first bridge, opened on July 22, 1997. The continuous-tied arch design, which was a distant third place in polls, was chosen for two reasons. One was that it blends in with the original span yet stands out on its own, and the other is lower maintenance costs because fewer spans are involved.

Design: Cantilever truss (westbound), Continuous tied arch (eastbound)
Longest span: 871 feet (265 m) (westbound), 922 feet (281 m) (eastbound)
Total length: 6,178 feet (1,883 m) (westbound), 6,109 feet (1,862 m) (eastbound)
Width: 38 feet (12 m) (westbound), 51 feet (16 m) (eastbound)
Height: 210 feet (64 m) (westbound), 233 feet (71 m) (eastbound)
Clearance below: 152 feet (46 m) (westbound), 155 feet (47 m) (eastbound)

SOURCE:Blue Water Bridge Wikipedia Entry