August 11, 2008
The Long Arm of Columbus Drive Bridge
The Columbus Drive Bridge may not look like much, but it is actually the second-longest bascule bridge in the world. (If you happen to know which is the longest, I’d love to hear from you. I had difficulty finding this information.) A bascule bridge is the movable type of drawbridge which people are probably most familiar with, in which a counterweight balances the span of the bridge, allowing it to swing upward at an angle. An animated example can be found here. Completed in 1983, the bridge is 269 feet long (82 m) and cost $33 million to build.
Photo credit: Wikipedia, (c/o Flickr) 24gotham, sdiver, polomex
Columbus Drive Bridge: 350 N Columbus Dr
Public trans: Bus # 124
Tags: architecture, bridges, chicago, chicago-river, downtown, river-north, river-west
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August 11th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
Got to love having Lexis access…
SPANTASIA Chicago Tribune November 30, 1997 Sunday, CHICAGOLAND FINAL EDITION,
“The second-longest bascule bridge in the world is the Columbus Drive Bridge, which was opened in 1982 and is 269 feet long. Only the 295-foot bascule bridge that spans Spain’s Bay of Cadiz, near the city of the same name, is longer at 295 feet.”
August 12th, 2008 at 2:42 am
Thanks! I was surprised at how difficult it was to find such a seemingly trivial piece of info. I appreciate the help.