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Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
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Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
The Robert F. Kennedy Bridge (RFK Bridge; or more commonly referred to by locals by its name prior to 2008, the Triborough Bridge, or Triboro) is a complex of bridges and elevated expressway viaducts in New York City. The bridges link the boroughs of Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronx. The viaducts cross Randalls and Wards Islands, previously two islands and now joined by landfill.
The RFK Bridge, a toll bridge, carries Interstate 278 (I-278) as well as the unsigned highway New York State Route 900G. It connects with the FDR Drive and the Harlem River Drive in Manhattan, the Bruckner Expressway (I-278) and the Major Deegan Expressway (Interstate 87) in the Bronx, and the Grand Central Parkway (I-278) and Astoria Boulevard in Queens. The three primary bridges of the RFK Bridge complex are:
These three bridges are connected by an elevated highway viaduct across Randalls and Wards Islands and 14 miles (23 km) of support roads. The viaduct includes a smaller span across the former site of Little Hell Gate, which separated Randalls and Wards Islands. Also part of the complex is a grade-separated T-interchange on Randalls Island, which sorted out traffic in a way that ensured that drivers paid a toll at only one bank of tollbooths. The tollbooths have since been removed, and all tolls are collected electronically at the approaches to each bridge.
The bridge complex was designed by Allston Dana with the collaboration of Othmar Ammann and architect Aymar Embury II, and has been called "not a bridge so much as a traffic machine, the largest ever built". The American Society of Civil Engineers designated the Triborough Bridge Project as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1986. The bridge, named for former New York senator Robert F. Kennedy, is owned and operated by MTA Bridges and Tunnels (formally the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, or TBTA), an affiliate of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
The RFK Bridge is made of four segments. The three primary spans traverse the East River to Queens; the Harlem River to Manhattan; and Bronx Kill to the Bronx, while the fourth is a T-shaped approach viaduct that leads to an interchange plaza between the three primary spans on Randalls Island. The Queens arm of the viaduct formerly crossed Little Hell Gate, a creek located between Randalls Island to the north and Wards Island to the south. Excluding elevated ramps, the segments are a total of 17,710 feet (5,400 m) long, with a 13,560-foot-long (4,130 m) span between the Bronx and Queens, and a 4,150-foot-long (1,260 m) span between Manhattan and the interchange plaza. In total, the bridge contains 17.5 miles (28.2 km) of roadway, including elevated ramps.
The bridge was primarily designed by chief engineer Allston Dana and architect Aymar Embury II. Wharton Green served as the Public Works Administration (PWA)'s resident engineer for the project.
The East River span, a suspension bridge across the Hell Gate of the East River, connects Queens with Wards Island. It carries eight lanes of Interstate 278, four in each direction, as well as a sidewalk on the northeastern side. The span connects to Grand Central Parkway, and indirectly to the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway (I-278), in Astoria, Queens. Originally it connected to the intersection of 25th Avenue and 31st Street; the former was later renamed Hoyt Avenue. The suspension span was designed by chief engineer Othmar Ammann. The span was originally designed to be double-decked, with eight lanes on each deck. When the construction of the Triborough Bridge was paused in 1932 due to lack of funding, the suspension span was downsized to a single deck. There are Warren trusses on each side of the span, which stiffen the deck.
The center span between the two suspension towers is 1,380 feet (421 m) long, and the side spans between the suspension towers and the anchorages are each 700 feet (213 m) long. The total length of the bridge is 2,780 feet (847 m), and the deck is 98 feet (30 m) wide. The columns under the Wards Island approach roadway were originally placed atop 400,000 steel ball bearings, allowing the roadway to move sideways by up to 13.25 inches (337 mm) in either direction.
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Robert F. Kennedy Bridge
The Robert F. Kennedy Bridge (RFK Bridge; or more commonly referred to by locals by its name prior to 2008, the Triborough Bridge, or Triboro) is a complex of bridges and elevated expressway viaducts in New York City. The bridges link the boroughs of Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronx. The viaducts cross Randalls and Wards Islands, previously two islands and now joined by landfill.
The RFK Bridge, a toll bridge, carries Interstate 278 (I-278) as well as the unsigned highway New York State Route 900G. It connects with the FDR Drive and the Harlem River Drive in Manhattan, the Bruckner Expressway (I-278) and the Major Deegan Expressway (Interstate 87) in the Bronx, and the Grand Central Parkway (I-278) and Astoria Boulevard in Queens. The three primary bridges of the RFK Bridge complex are:
These three bridges are connected by an elevated highway viaduct across Randalls and Wards Islands and 14 miles (23 km) of support roads. The viaduct includes a smaller span across the former site of Little Hell Gate, which separated Randalls and Wards Islands. Also part of the complex is a grade-separated T-interchange on Randalls Island, which sorted out traffic in a way that ensured that drivers paid a toll at only one bank of tollbooths. The tollbooths have since been removed, and all tolls are collected electronically at the approaches to each bridge.
The bridge complex was designed by Allston Dana with the collaboration of Othmar Ammann and architect Aymar Embury II, and has been called "not a bridge so much as a traffic machine, the largest ever built". The American Society of Civil Engineers designated the Triborough Bridge Project as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1986. The bridge, named for former New York senator Robert F. Kennedy, is owned and operated by MTA Bridges and Tunnels (formally the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, or TBTA), an affiliate of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
The RFK Bridge is made of four segments. The three primary spans traverse the East River to Queens; the Harlem River to Manhattan; and Bronx Kill to the Bronx, while the fourth is a T-shaped approach viaduct that leads to an interchange plaza between the three primary spans on Randalls Island. The Queens arm of the viaduct formerly crossed Little Hell Gate, a creek located between Randalls Island to the north and Wards Island to the south. Excluding elevated ramps, the segments are a total of 17,710 feet (5,400 m) long, with a 13,560-foot-long (4,130 m) span between the Bronx and Queens, and a 4,150-foot-long (1,260 m) span between Manhattan and the interchange plaza. In total, the bridge contains 17.5 miles (28.2 km) of roadway, including elevated ramps.
The bridge was primarily designed by chief engineer Allston Dana and architect Aymar Embury II. Wharton Green served as the Public Works Administration (PWA)'s resident engineer for the project.
The East River span, a suspension bridge across the Hell Gate of the East River, connects Queens with Wards Island. It carries eight lanes of Interstate 278, four in each direction, as well as a sidewalk on the northeastern side. The span connects to Grand Central Parkway, and indirectly to the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway (I-278), in Astoria, Queens. Originally it connected to the intersection of 25th Avenue and 31st Street; the former was later renamed Hoyt Avenue. The suspension span was designed by chief engineer Othmar Ammann. The span was originally designed to be double-decked, with eight lanes on each deck. When the construction of the Triborough Bridge was paused in 1932 due to lack of funding, the suspension span was downsized to a single deck. There are Warren trusses on each side of the span, which stiffen the deck.
The center span between the two suspension towers is 1,380 feet (421 m) long, and the side spans between the suspension towers and the anchorages are each 700 feet (213 m) long. The total length of the bridge is 2,780 feet (847 m), and the deck is 98 feet (30 m) wide. The columns under the Wards Island approach roadway were originally placed atop 400,000 steel ball bearings, allowing the roadway to move sideways by up to 13.25 inches (337 mm) in either direction.
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