Newburgh-Beacon Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Newburgh–Beacon Bridge, (officially the Hamilton Fish
Newburgh–Beacon Bridge) is a cantilever
toll bridge that spans the Hudson River
in New York State carrying NY 52
and Interstate 84
between Newburgh
and Beacon
. The first (westbound, north of other span) span was opened to traffic on November 2, 1963 as a two-lane (one in each direction) bridge.
and constructed by Frederick Snare, Drave and Bethlehem Steel.
By 1964, the original two-lane structure was already over capacity, and planning for additional capacity began in 1972. After considering doubledecking (which the original bridge was not designed for) the decision was taken by NYSBA
to add a second parallel span south of the original.
The original span was made of steel that needs painting, but the newer span is made of "rusting" steel, (believed to be COR-TEN
or a similar material although sources are not clear) which surface corrodes to a brown color and does not need painting as corrosion does not go deeper. On November 1, 1980, this second, parallel span, also designed by Modjeski & Masters but constructed by American Bridge Company
, was opened to traffic. The original span was closed for renovation, to add a lane and to paint it brown to match the color of the new span, from December 1980 to June 1984. In 1997, the bridge was officially renamed the Hamilton Fish
Newburgh–Beacon Bridge. It is still more commonly referred to by its original name.
Today, then, there are actually two spans;
The span provides connections to the New York State Thruway
(Interstate 87
) and US 9W
in Newburgh
and US 9 in Fishkill
. The bridges includes a 2,204 foot (672 m) cantilever span, with a main span of 1,000 feet (305 m) and side spans of 602 feet (183 m). The total length of all spans and approaches is 7855 feet (2394 m) for the north span and 7789 feet (2374 m) for the south span.
The bridges, owned by the New York State Bridge Authority
, carry six lanes of traffic and approximately 65,000 vehicles per day. The eastbound (newer) bridge is the only portion of I-84 where there are three lanes not intended as exit/merge lanes ("acceleration/deceleration lanes").
Eastbound passenger vehicles are charged a toll of $1 to cross the span. The toll plaza is located on the eastern (Beacon) shore.
Hamilton Fish
Hamilton Fish was an American statesman and politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York, United States Senator and United States Secretary of State. Fish has been considered one of the best Secretary of States in the United States history; known for his judiciousness and reform efforts...
Newburgh–Beacon Bridge) is a cantilever
Cantilever bridge
A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams; however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from...
toll bridge that spans the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
in New York State carrying NY 52
New York State Route 52
New York State Route 52 is a long state highway in the southeastern part of New York in the United States. It generally runs from west to east, beginning at the Pennsylvania state line in the Delaware River near Narrowsburg, crossing the Hudson River on the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge, and ending...
and Interstate 84
Interstate 84 in New York
Interstate 84 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Dunmore, Pennsylvania, to Sturbridge, Massachusetts, in the Eastern United States. In New York, I-84 extends from the Pennsylvania state line at Port Jervis to the Connecticut state line east of Brewster...
between Newburgh
Newburgh (city), New York
Newburgh is a city located in Orange County, New York, United States, north of New York City, and south of Albany, on the Hudson River. Newburgh is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown metropolitan area, which includes all of Dutchess and Orange counties. The Newburgh area was...
and Beacon
Beacon, New York
Beacon is a city located in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The 2010 census placed the city total population at 15,541. Beacon is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport,...
. The first (westbound, north of other span) span was opened to traffic on November 2, 1963 as a two-lane (one in each direction) bridge.
Development
Although original plans called for a four-lane bridge, funding difficulties resulted in the reduction in lanes. This span was designed by Modjeski & MastersRalph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski was a Polish-born American civil engineer who achieved prominence as a pre-eminent bridge designer in the United States.-Life:...
and constructed by Frederick Snare, Drave and Bethlehem Steel.
By 1964, the original two-lane structure was already over capacity, and planning for additional capacity began in 1972. After considering doubledecking (which the original bridge was not designed for) the decision was taken by NYSBA
New York State Bridge Authority
The New York State Bridge Authority is a public benefit corporation in New York State, United States. The NYSBA was born out of the necessity for a bridge over the Hudson River to link the city of Hudson and the village of Catskill.-History:...
to add a second parallel span south of the original.
The original span was made of steel that needs painting, but the newer span is made of "rusting" steel, (believed to be COR-TEN
Cor-ten
Weathering steel, best-known under the trademark COR-TEN steel and sometimes written without the hyphen as "Corten steel", is a group of steel alloys which were developed to eliminate the need for painting, and form a stable rust-like appearance if exposed to the weather for several years.United...
or a similar material although sources are not clear) which surface corrodes to a brown color and does not need painting as corrosion does not go deeper. On November 1, 1980, this second, parallel span, also designed by Modjeski & Masters but constructed by American Bridge Company
American Bridge Company
The American Bridge Company is a privately held civil engineering firm specializing in the construction and renovation of bridges and other large civil engineering projects, founded in 1900, and headquartered in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh.-Products and industry positioning:The...
, was opened to traffic. The original span was closed for renovation, to add a lane and to paint it brown to match the color of the new span, from December 1980 to June 1984. In 1997, the bridge was officially renamed the Hamilton Fish
Hamilton Fish
Hamilton Fish was an American statesman and politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York, United States Senator and United States Secretary of State. Fish has been considered one of the best Secretary of States in the United States history; known for his judiciousness and reform efforts...
Newburgh–Beacon Bridge. It is still more commonly referred to by its original name.
Today, then, there are actually two spans;
- The westbound (northern) bridge, opened in 1963 carrying one lane of traffic in each direction. Today it accommodates three 12 feet (3.7 m) travel lanes and with no shoulders. Variable lane-use signs allow the right lane to be designated as a breakdown lane at night and off-peak travel times. When the right lane is being used as a shoulder, a red X appears on the signs above it, while a green arrow illuminates when the lane is used for travel during peak times.
- The newer eastbound span was built with three 12 feet (3.7 m) travel lanes, a 10 feet (3 m) right shoulder, a 6 feet (1.8 m) left shoulder and pedestrian sidewalk separated from the roadway by a concrete barrier. Because the eastbound span was built with shoulders, there is no need to reduce the travel lanes to two during off-peak times.
The span provides connections to the New York State Thruway
New York State Thruway
The New York State Thruway is a system of limited-access highways located within the state of New York in the United States. The system, known officially as the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway for former New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey, is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority and...
(Interstate 87
Interstate 87
Interstate 87 is a Interstate Highway located entirely within New York State in the United States of America. I-87 is the longest intrastate Interstate highway in the Interstate Highway System. Its southern end is at the Bronx approaches of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in New York City...
) and US 9W
U.S. Route 9W
U.S. Route 9W is a north–south U.S. Highway in the states of New Jersey and New York. It begins on Fletcher Avenue in Fort Lee, New Jersey as it crosses the US 1 & 9, US 46, and the Interstate 95 approaches to the George Washington Bridge, where it heads north up the west...
in Newburgh
Newburgh (town), New York
Newburgh is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. The 2010 census determined the population is 29,801. This is the first time ever that the population of the Town of Newburgh officially exceeded that of the adjacent but totally separate municipality known as the city of Newburgh...
and US 9 in Fishkill
Fishkill, New York
Fishkill is an upscale village within the much larger town, Town of Fishkill, one of the fastest growing towns in the region, in Dutchess County, New York, USA. The village population was 1,735 at the 2000 census...
. The bridges includes a 2,204 foot (672 m) cantilever span, with a main span of 1,000 feet (305 m) and side spans of 602 feet (183 m). The total length of all spans and approaches is 7855 feet (2394 m) for the north span and 7789 feet (2374 m) for the south span.
New York State Bridge Authority
The New York State Bridge Authority is a public benefit corporation in New York State, United States. The NYSBA was born out of the necessity for a bridge over the Hudson River to link the city of Hudson and the village of Catskill.-History:...
, carry six lanes of traffic and approximately 65,000 vehicles per day. The eastbound (newer) bridge is the only portion of I-84 where there are three lanes not intended as exit/merge lanes ("acceleration/deceleration lanes").
Eastbound passenger vehicles are charged a toll of $1 to cross the span. The toll plaza is located on the eastern (Beacon) shore.
Awards, Records, and Trivia
- The original bridge won the 1965 American Institute of Steel ConstructionAmerican Institute of Steel ConstructionThe American Institute of Steel Construction, often abbreviated AISC, is a not-for-profit technical institute and trade association for the use of structural steel in the construction industry of the United States. It is headquartered in Chicago, IL. Their mission is to make structural steel the...
"most beautiful bridge" award for long-span bridges. Modeski & Masters used a curved cantilever, not the more typical peaked cantilever used by the Tappan Zee BridgeTappan Zee BridgeThe Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge, usually referred to as Tappan Zee Bridge, is a cantilever bridge in New York over the Hudson River at one of its widest points; the Tappan Zee is named for an American Indian tribe from the area called "Tappan"; and zee being the Dutch word for "sea"....
and others. - The newer bridge was claimed to be the longest bridge constructed of COR-TEN material when opened.
- As of late 2005, the bridge spans are the 19th-longest cantilever spans in the world.
- The bridge is named after Hamilton FishHamilton FishHamilton Fish was an American statesman and politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York, United States Senator and United States Secretary of State. Fish has been considered one of the best Secretary of States in the United States history; known for his judiciousness and reform efforts...
, former Governor of New YorkGovernor of New YorkThe Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
, United States Senator and United States Secretary of StateUnited States Secretary of StateThe United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
. - Suicide attempts have become more frequent in the last decade, so officials installed call boxes along the bridge in hopes of reducing them.
- The western terminus of the bridge is not in the City of Newburgh, but in the Town of NewburghNewburgh (town), New YorkNewburgh is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. The 2010 census determined the population is 29,801. This is the first time ever that the population of the Town of Newburgh officially exceeded that of the adjacent but totally separate municipality known as the city of Newburgh...
. The boundary of the City of Newburgh is less than a hundred yards to the south. - The eastern terminus is within the Limits of the City of Beacon, by a few feet. By the time eastbound motorists have reached the first exit on the east shore, Exit 11, they have passed into the Town of Fishkill.
- The pedestrian crosswalk, open dawn to dusk, is popular with local hikers, joggers, and bicyclists. The Bridge Authority provided two parking lots, just north of the overpass on either side of Grand Avenue on the west side of the bridge. New York State Bicycle Route 17 crosses the Hudson River on the Newburgh–Beacon Bridge.