MLK Drive Bridge explained

Bridge Name:MLK Drive Bridge
Official Name:Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Bridge
Other Name:West River Drive Bridge
Carries:Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive
Crosses:Schuylkill River, Schuylkill River Trail
Locale:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Owner:Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
Maint:PennDOT
Id:677301025000120
Design:girder
Material:steel, concrete
Length:701.1 feet
Width:36.1 feet
Spans:3
Pierswater:2
Open:1966
Coordinates:39.9645°N -75.1839°W

The MLK Drive Bridge is a steel girder bridge built in 1966 over the Schuylkill River on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive (formerly known as West River Drive) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation owns and maintains the bridge.[1] The western end of this bridge is upstream from the western end of the Spring Garden Street Bridge, but the eastern end of this bridge is downstream from the eastern end of the Spring Garden Street Bridge.

The bridge is currently closed to all traffic as it undergoes a reconstruction project which is expected to be completed in 2025.[2] The bridge's rehabilitation includes expanding the width at street level, providing space for a dedicated bicycle and pedestrian lane which will connect to the MLK Drive trail; the $20.1 million project was funded by the Bridge Formula Program grant included in the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Joe Biden.[3]

Gallery

File:Phila West River Drive Bridge11.png|MLK Drive Bridge, looking west.File:Spring Garden and West River Bridges.jpg|As viewed from a kayak on the Schuylkill River. The MLK Drive Bridge is the lower of the two.

See also

References

  1. Web site: West River Drive Bridge . 2010-08-23 . 2010-07-26 . Historic Bridges of the United States . James Baughn . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101109090114/http://bridgehunter.com/pa/philadelphia/west-river-drive/ . 9 Nov 2010.
  2. News: Fitzgerald . Thomas . 13 Jan 2023 . Beginning in February, MLK Drive bridge will be closed to the public until summer 2025 . 9 Feb 2024 . The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  3. Web site: Infrastructure Roundup: City Receives $158M Grant for Chinatown Stitch, Secretary Buttigieg Tours MLK Drive Bridge Project, and More . Cassidy, Matthew . City of Philadelphia . April 4, 2024 . May 9, 2024.