The John F. Limehouse Memorial Bridge, located about west of downtown
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, was completed in 2003. It replaced an obsolete low-level
swing bridge over the
Stono River
The Stono River or Creek is a tidal channel in southeast South Carolina, located southwest of Charleston. The channel runs southwest to northeast between the mainland and Wadmalaw Island and Johns Island, from north Edisto River between Johns ...
. The current
bridge, which crosses a channel between
Johns Island and St. Andrews Parish, an area generally called
West Ashley, was completed under a partnership between the
South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) and the
United States Coast Guard.
Purpose
The
Stono River
The Stono River or Creek is a tidal channel in southeast South Carolina, located southwest of Charleston. The channel runs southwest to northeast between the mainland and Wadmalaw Island and Johns Island, from north Edisto River between Johns ...
is a critical part of the of
Intracoastal Waterway used by
barges,
fishing boats, and recreational
mariners. The former swing bridge, built in 1929,
was an obstruction to vessel traffic, thus removal was mandated by the U.S. Coast Guard in an Order to Alter issued in 1994, leaving only a few swing bridges in the Coast Guard’s Seventh District, from
Key West, Florida
Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...
, to the northernmost areas of
South Carolina.
The current, concrete structure is a high-level, fixed span. The new bridge has a horizontal clearance for vessels of compared with the former clearance of and a vertical clearance of above the high-water mark, compared to a previous clearance of only in the closed position. The new structure accommodates four lanes of traffic and provides access to Johns,
Kiawah,
Seabrook, and
Wadmalaw Islands.
Design and construction
Design of the bridge was contracted to Ralph Whitehead Associates, Inc., of
Charlotte, North Carolina. Construction was awarded to Jones Brothers, Inc., of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. The Coast Guard provided about $21 million of the total $30 million bridge cost, with the rest paid by the State.
The State government donated the debris to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
artificial reef program. After demolishing the old span, the
contractor
A contractor is a person or company that performs work on a contract basis. The term may refer to:
Business roles
* Defense contractor, arms industry which provides weapons or military goods to a government
* General contractor, an individual o ...
transported its concrete and steel components to the Kiawah Reef site about away. The current bridge was opened to traffic in June 2003, approximately two months ahead of schedule.
See also
*
References
*
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrationlocations of tide stations
*
U.S. Coast Guard Document Release 10-11, October 27, 2003
*
External links
*{{HAER , survey=SC-24 , id=sc0920 , title=Stono River Bridge, Spanning Stono River between James & Johns Islands, Charleston, Charleston County, SC , photos=10 , data=4 , cap=1 of previous structure
Bridges completed in 2003
Road bridges in South Carolina
Limehouse
Historic American Engineering Record in South Carolina
Monuments and memorials in South Carolina
Concrete bridges in the United States