Fort Pitt Bridge

Fort Pitt Bridge
Official name	Fort Pitt Bridge
Other name(s)	Parkway West #1
Carries	8 lanes (4 upper, 4 lower) of
Crosses	Monongahela River
Locale	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Maintained by	PennDOT
Design	Double-decked Steel Bowstring Arch bridge
Total length	1,207 feet (368 m)
Longest span	750 feet (230 m)
Clearance below	47.1 feet (14.4 m)
Opened	June 19, 1959
Daily traffic	150,000
Coordinates	40.43883°N 80.01113°W / 40.43883; -80.01113

The Fort Pitt Bridge is a steel, double decker bowstring arch bridge that spans the Monongahela River near its confluence with the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It carries Interstate 376 (formerly Interstate 279) between the Fort Pitt Tunnel and Downtown Pittsburgh. It was the world's first computer designed bowstring arch bridge. [1]

History

The Fort Pitt Bridge, designed by George S. Richardson of Richardson, Gordon, & Associates, opened on June 19, 1959. Its predecessor bridge since the late 19th century, the Point Bridge, spanned even closer to the aforementioned confluence from West Carson Street (near the Duquesne Incline) to Water St. (now Fort Pitt Blvd.), near the tip of Point State Park. The Point Bridge closed two days after the opening of the Fort Pitt Bridge, but remained standing until it was dismantled (along with the connected Manchester Bridge) in 1970.

Until the opening of the Fort Pitt Tunnels on September 1, 1960, outbound traffic was routed onto West Carson St. (PA 837 North), heading towards the West End.

The bridge is used by 150,000 vehicles per day.

The Fort Pitt Bridge is also part of a sequence from The Song Remains the Same (1976), a documentary of Led Zeppelin's 1973 tour. Many other Pittsburgh landmarks are also shown, including the Fort Pitt Tunnel, the old Pittsburgh International Airport (1952–1992) and Three Rivers Stadium.

See also

• List of crossings of the Monongahela River

External links

• Travel Channel Video
• Fort Pitt Bridge at PGH Bridges.com
• Fort Pitt Bridge at Structurae