Pelham Bridge

Pelham Bridge, March 2, 2010
Rob Hickman on a 26", Keith Nelson on a 26"


From Wikipedia:

The Pelham Bridge is a bascule bridge located in the New York City borough of the Bronx. It carries Shore Road, and a walkway along the downstream side, over the Hutchinson River. The bridge is operated and maintained by the New York City Department of Transportation.

Unlike most movable bridges in the city, Pelham Bridge opens quite frequently; in 2008, it opened a total of 1,446 times. The watercraft traffic is greater than for any other drawbridge in the city.

History

The first bridge at the site was a stone bridge built in 1815 that was destroyed in a storm on April 12, 1816. Another bridge wouldn't be built at the site for eighteen years.

The current bridge replaced an older one that required constant, expensive maintenance. The new bridge was opened to traffic on October 15, 1908 before it was fully completed so as to be able to save costs on maintaining the old bridge. During construction, the water main for City Island and Pelham Bay Park had to be interrupted, so water was imported from New Rochelle, costing the city $5,323.93. The bridge was completed on February 17, 1909 at a total cost of $605,274.06.
The bridge was reconstructed in 1985.

A celebration of the bridge's centennial took place on October 28, 2008.

The bridge is sometimes mistakenly called "The Pelham Bay Bridge" in news reports. It is not in or across Pelham Bay itself, but it is well inside Pelham Bay Park boundaries across the Hutchinson River north of Eastchester Bay. Signs saying "Pelham Bridge" were not replaced after windy storms removed them. According to the NYC DOT Pelham Bridge is the most used bridge in New York City.