The Causeway is a narrow strip of

reclaimed land Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new Terrestrial ecoregion, land from oceans, list of seas, seas, Stream bed, riverbeds or lak ...

and bridges in the north of

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

linking

Hamilton Parish Hamilton Parish (originally Bedford Parish) is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It was renamed for Scottish aristocrat James Hamilton, 2nd Marquess of Hamilton (1589-1625) when he purchased the shares originally held in the Virginia Company ...

on the mainland in the southwest and

Bermuda International Airport L.F. Wade International Airport , formerly named Bermuda International Airport, is the sole airport serving the British overseas territory of Bermuda in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is located in the parish of St. George's and is northeast of B ...

on St. David's Island in St. George's Parish in the northeast, which are otherwise divided by Castle Harbour. The need for such a roadway was long-known to Bermuda's authorities. In the early 19th century, a committee was established to investigate possible plans. It would not be until 1867 that a valid plan, that by Lt. Albert Hime of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

, was approved. Built by the Royal Engineers, Hime's Causeway was opened to traffic on 19 September 1871 by Governor Lefroy. The construction project cost £27,000 (in comparison, the

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

raised only £25,000 in revenue for that year). Originally, it spanned from Blue Hole Hill, across the Cartwheel Islands (four small islets that are no longer visible) to Longbird Island. The project also included a new road in Bailey's Bay and across Longbird Island, and a swing bridge from Longbird to St. George's, finally giving an uninterrupted land route from the burgeoning main island to the old colony. Until

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, there were virtually no motor vehicles allowed in Bermuda, and only bicycles and horse-drawn carriages used the Causeway. The

Bermuda Railway The Bermuda Railway was a common carrier line that operated in Bermuda for a brief period (October 31, 1931 – May 1, 1948). In its 17 years of existence, the railway provided frequent passenger and freight service over its length spann ...

operated island-wide, providing rail passenger and freight service between St. George's and Somerset in

Sandys Parish, Bermuda Sandys Parish ( "sands") is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. It is named for English aristocrat Sir Edwin Sandys (1561–1629), and hence there is no apostrophe in the name. It is located in the south west of the island chain, occupying the ...

. Consequently, the causeway was lightly used. With the construction of the Kindley Field airbase by the

U.S. Army Air Force The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

in 1942–1943 and the relaxation of the ban on motor vehicles for essential military uses during the wartime emergency, motorized vehicle use of the causeway increased significantly. Beginning in the late 1940s after World War II, the Bermuda Government allowed civilian use of motor vehicles, and the causeway became an essential part of Bermuda's transport infrastructure for the average citizen. Throughout its existence, the causeway has repeatedly suffered from damage due to hurricanes. On 1 September 1880, the causeway was wrecked by "the great storm". It was rebuilt following the original design, which stood until 14 September 1899, when three-fourths of a mile of the bridge was ravaged by another powerful hurricane. Afterwards, the causeway was rebuilt of stone block. Nearly a century later, in 1995,

Hurricane Felix Hurricane Felix was an extremely powerful Category 5 Atlantic hurricane which was the southernmost-landfalling Category 5 storm on record, surpassing Hurricane Edith of 1971. It was the sixth named storm, second hurricane, and second Categor ...

caused notable damage. On 5 September 2003,

Hurricane Fabian Hurricane Fabian was a powerful Cape Verde hurricane that impacted Bermuda in early September during the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the sixth named storm, fourth hurricane, and first major hurricane of the season, developed from a tr ...

dealt critical damage, including the loss of four lives. Following the damage inflicted by Hurricane Fabian, the Bermuda Government began investigating alternatives to repairing the causeway after each storm knocked it out. These alternatives include an underwater tunnel, a true bridge, and constructing additional roadways, such as through

Coney Island Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, Manhattan Beach to its east, L ...

and

Ferry Reach Ferry Reach is a three mile (five kilometre) long channel in the north-east of Bermuda, which lies between St. George's Island in the north and St. David's Island in the south south-west of the town of St. George's. It extends south from St. G ...

parks. Public meetings on these plans began in October 2006. By February 2010, however, plans to replace the causeway had been abandoned. The issue was a touchy subject when raised in the

Senate of Bermuda The Senate of Bermuda is the upper house of the Parliament of Bermuda, the other being the House of Assembly. The Senate consists of eleven members appointed by the Governor for five-year terms — five Senators are nominated by the Premier, t ...

.Interviews with Government and Opposition Senators, VSB News, February 17, 2010

External links

Bermuda Government website on future Causeway development

References

{{Bermuda topics Bridges in Bermuda Geography of Bermuda Transport in Bermuda Hamilton Parish St. David's Island, Bermuda