The Charles M. Braga Jr. Memorial Bridge, also known as the Braga Bridge, is a through truss bridge that carries Interstate 195 over the Taunton River between the town of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

and the city of Fall River, near the mouth of the

Quequechan River The Quequechan River is a river in Fall River, Massachusetts, that flows in a northwesterly direction from the northwest corner of the South Watuppa Pond through the heart of the city of Fall River and into the end of the Taunton River at Mou ...

at the confluence with

Mount Hope Bay Mount Hope Bay is a tidal estuary located at the mouth of the Taunton River on the Massachusetts and Rhode Island border. It is an arm of Narragansett Bay. The bay is named after Mount Hope, a small hill located on its western shore in what is ...

. At just over a mile long, it is one of the longest bridges in

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. Opened to traffic on April 15, 1966, it provides an important link between

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

, New Bedford, and

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

History

Planning began in the early 1950s for a new bridge to ease the congestion of the nearby Slade's Ferry and

Brightman Street Bridge The Brightman Street Bridge is a long, four-lane wide drawbridge spanning the Taunton River between the town of Somerset and the city of Fall River, Massachusetts. It was authorized in 1903 by the state legislature, and building took place betw ...

s, as well as to carry the proposed Cape Cod Expressway over the Taunton River. The original plan called for a "high level bridge" to be located much further north, near what is now the Veterans Memorial Bridge, with a highway passing through the north end of the city in a direct line to Wareham. In 1959, the role of the new bridge was changed to carrying the new Interstate 195 over the Taunton River, connecting Providence and New Bedford. Construction of the bridge started in 1959 and finished in the spring of 1966. The bridge was named after Charles M. Braga, a Fall River native of

Portuguese American Portuguese Americans ( pt, português-americanos), also known as Luso-Americans (''luso-americanos''), are citizens and residents of the United States who are connected to the country of Portugal by birth, ancestry, or citizenship. Americans and ...

descent who was killed in the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

Specifications

With a total span of , and standing over high water in the Taunton River, the Braga Bridge easily accommodates the high-traffic shipping lane in the river. It is approximately wide, enough for six lanes of traffic. Braga bridge paint job

Recent history

As the Braga Bridge approached its 25th anniversary in 1989, the Massachusetts Department of Public Works (MassDPW) undertook a comprehensive two-year rehabilitation of the span and approaches. The project included the replacement of the existing deck with a new lightweight deck overlaid with

bituminous Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term ...

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...

. Construction crews repaired and repainted structural steel along the length of the mile-long span, a new concrete

Jersey barrier A Jersey barrier, Jersey wall, or Jersey bump is a modular concrete or plastic barrier employed to separate lanes of traffic. It is designed to minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing vehicle crossovers resu ...

was built in the center median, and "suicide fences" were built along the span. In 2003, the

Massachusetts Highway Department The Massachusetts Highway Department (abbreviated MassHighway) was the highway department in the U.S. state of Massachusetts from 1991 until the formation of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) in 2009. The responsibilities ...

began what was to be a three-year, $9 million rehabilitation of the Braga Bridge. The new top concrete layer of roadway was given a

latex Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well. In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosperms ...

additive that resists water seepage to reduce cracking. Originally scheduled for completion in 2005, the end of the project was first re-scheduled for 2006 because of delays associated with the nearby Government Center project along I-195 in Fall River. In the late summer of 2009, a vote was held for the public to decide on a new color for the bridge. Over 7,000 votes were cast, with voters choosing a dark blue color over lime green (the original color), light blue, and silver. The work began on the new paint job April 11, 2010, and was originally scheduled for completion in June 2011. The estimated cost for the project at one time was $13.3 million. Construction work has expanded and continued into 2015 as part of the overall $197-million Route 79/Braga Bridge Improvement Project. Construction-related detours and delays were expected through at least the summer of 2016. In October 2016, all lanes of the bridge were open for travel and construction was finished.

Role in Fall River history

The building of the Braga Bridge changed the city of Fall River in several ways. Firstly, its location caused large scale alterations to the

. The falls of the river, which the city is named for, were channeled into tunnels which lead directly into the Taunton River. Also, because of the right-of-way of the bridge, a portion of the river upstream was narrowed (and in one spot, divided in half), changing the characteristics of the river. Plans have sporadically appeared to recreate the falls near the bridge, though none have ever materialized. Another change caused by the path of the bridge was the replacement of the former City Hall with the current Fall River Government Center, the first government building built over an interstate. Several other streets in the city were also realigned due to the construction of the highway, as well as the removal of the historic Granite Block, Troy Mills and several buildings of the Union Mills complex The bridge itself is now seen as one of the icons of the city, often shown in the background of photographs of

Battleship Cove Battleship Cove is a nonprofit maritime museum and war memorial in Fall River, Massachusetts, United States. Featuring the world's largest collection of World War II naval vessels, it is home to the highly decorated battleship . It is located at ...

and other views from across the Taunton River often include the bridge, given its central location in the geography of the city. Given its role as a part of Interstate 195, it is a landmark along the route for many vacationers towards

. It is also a vital link in the area's transportation network, as it is the main route joining the South Coast region with

. This was never as apparent as in March 1999, when falling cement acoustical tiles from under the nearby Fall River Government Center closed the highway for a week at the end of the bridge, causing traffic delays throughout the entire region.

References

External links