The Cochrane–Africatown USA Bridge is a

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern ...

carrying US 90/ US 98 Truck across the Mobile River from the mainland to Blakeley Island in Mobile, Alabama.

History

The Cochrane–Africatown USA Bridge was completed and opened in 1991. It was named in honor of the 60-year-old vertical-lift Cochrane Bridge (in turn named for president of the Mobile, Alabama Chamber of Commerce at the time, John T. Cochrane, Sr.) that it replaced, and the historic community of

Africatown Africatown, also known as AfricaTown USA and Plateau, is a historic community located three miles (5 km) north of downtown Mobile, Alabama. It was formed by a group of 32 West Africans, who in 1860 were included in the last known illegal sh ...

, which was located where the western approach to the bridge was built. In 1997 community activists promoted preservation and designation of the Africatown Historic District to encourage development there. The district was included on Mobile's African American Heritage Trail in 2009. In 2012 it was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. Volkert and Associates, Inc. design for the bridge earned it the Outstanding Engineering Achievement in the U.S.A. Award from the

National Society of Professional Engineers The National Society of Professional Engineers (abbreviate as NSPE) is a professional association representing licensed professional engineers in the United States. NSPE is the recognized voice and advocate of licensed Professional Engineers repr ...

and the Award of Excellence in Highway Design from the

Federal Highway Administration The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program ...

, both in 1992. This was the first, and is still the only, cable-stayed bridge in the state of Alabama. The bridge was damaged on August 29, 2005, when Hurricane Katrina broke a 13,000-ton oil platform, the ''PSS Chemul,'' free from

drydock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

and wedged it under the bridge. The bridge remained in service and continued to carry two lanes of traffic after the storm.

References

Cable-stayed bridges in the United States Bridges in Mobile, Alabama Bridges completed in 1991 Bridges over the Mobile River Road bridges in Alabama U.S. Route 90 U.S. Route 98 1991 establishments in Alabama Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System {{Alabama-bridge-struct-stub