Columbia–Wrightsville Bridge

The Columbia–Wrightsville Bridge, officially the Veterans Memorial Bridge, spans the Susquehanna River between Columbia and Wrightsville, Pennsylvania, and carries Pennsylvania Route 462 and BicyclePA Route S. Built originally as the Lancaster-York Intercounty Bridge, construction began in 1929, and the bridge opened September 30, 1930. On November 11, 1980, it was officially dedicated as Veterans Memorial Bridge, though it is still referenced locally as the Columbia–Wrightsville Bridge.

Veterans Memorial Bridge
ColumbiaWrightsville Bridge
Looking west over the Susquehanna River
Coordinates40°01′44″N 76°31′01″W
Carries
  • 2 lanes of PA 462 / BicyclePA Route S
CrossesSusquehanna River
LocaleWrightsville, Pennsylvania and Columbia, Pennsylvania
Official nameVeterans Memorial Bridge
Maintained byPennDOT
ID number360462001000000
Characteristics
Designconcrete deck arch bridge
Total length6,657 feet (2,029 m)
Width48 feet (15 m)
Longest span185 feet (56 m)
History
OpenedSeptember 30, 1930 (94 years ago)
Statistics
Daily traffic10,350 (2004)
Tollwas $0.25 for cars when opened; toll no longer collected
Location

In nominating the present Columbia–Wrightsville Bridge as an engineering landmark, the Pennsylvania section of the American Society of Civil Engineers noted that it is "a splendid example of the graceful multiple-span, reinforced-concrete arched form popular in early 20th Century highway bridges in the United States." The bridge is designated State Route 462 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is also a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Instead of being replaced by a name such as the Old Lincoln Highway, its name is a kept part of the historic Lincoln Highway in local naming, the nation's first transcontinental highway, connecting a series of local highways and stretching from New York City to San Francisco. The opening in 1940 of the cross-state Pennsylvania Turnpike, a part of Interstate 76, subsequently provided faster passage.

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