The High Rise Bridge is a four-lane, bascule drawbridge that

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, US Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange w ...

(I-64) uses to cross the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth River. The twin spans of concrete and steel were completed in 1972, and are operated by VDOT. Currently, the High Rise Bridge is the only highway-grade toll-free crossing of the Southern Branch Elizabeth River, since the

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

and Midtown Tunnel began tolling in 2014. Other non-interstate alternate routes include the

Gilmerton Bridge The Gilmerton Bridge, originally a twin bascule drawbridge, is now a vertical-lift bridge which spans the Southern Branch Elizabeth River in the City of Chesapeake in South Hampton Roads in southeastern Virginia. Completed in 1938, it carries ...

on U.S. Route 13 (US 13;

Military Highway Military Highway is a four-to-eight-lane roadway built in the South Hampton Roads region of eastern Virginia, USA during World War II. Carrying US 13 for most of its length, it also carries US 58, and US 460 while in Chesapeake. It is a major al ...

), as well as the tolled

Jordan Bridge The Jordan Bridge, officially named the South Norfolk Jordan Bridge, is a tolled highway fixed bridge which carries State Route 337 over the Southern Branch Elizabeth River between the City of Portsmouth into the City of Chesapeake in South ...

in Portsmouth. Because of the high impact a bridge opening has on traffic, the bridge only opens on a 24-hour advanced notice unless the scheduled lift time is during the bridge's restricted hours of 6-9am and 3-6pm, when a three-day notice is required. The current reconstruction project intends to produce a fixed bridge with clearance, expected to significantly reduce traffic delays associated with bridge lifts.

History

On Wednesday November 10, 2010 after the 2:30 opening the bridge was stuck in the up position causing widespread traffic delays. It was later attributed to an electrical outage during a lift at 2:30 p.m.. That failure caused a malfunction in the bridge's lift mechanism which caused the bridge to not close completely. Engineers had to manually lower the span back together, and reopened the bridge some three and a half hours later, at 6:00 pm. In 2016, the

Commonwealth Transportation Board The Commonwealth Transportation Board, formerly the State Highway and Transportation Board, regulates and funds transportation in Virginia. It oversees the Virginia Department of Transportation. Membership The Board consists of seventeen members: * ...

approved a $2.3 billion project that would eventually widen the corridor of I-64 that includes the bridge to eight lanes, and would replace the drawbridge with a fixed span bridge, initially planned for , as part of the I-64 Southside Widening Project. As of October 2016, the plan is in Phase I, which would improve the corridor six lanes and build the new four lane Outer Loop bridge, which carries I-64 towards Chesapeake/Norfolk. The project is currently in

Design–build Design–build (or design/build, and abbreviated D–B or D/B accordingly) is a project delivery system used in the construction industry. It is a method to deliver a project in which the design and construction services are contracted by a sin ...

status, and contract phase of 2017 has been completed with construction underway and completion expected in 2021.

References

Crossings of the Elizabeth River Bridges on the Interstate Highway System Road bridges in Virginia Bridges in Chesapeake, Virginia Movable bridges on the Interstate Highway System Transportation in Chesapeake, Virginia Interstate 64 Steel bridges in the United States Bascule bridges in the United States {{Virginia-bridge-struct-stub

History

See also

References