The Sarah Mildred Long Bridge is a lift bridge

Lift bridge

A vertical-lift bridge or lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck....

 that carries the US 1 Bypass over the Piscataqua River

Piscataqua River

The Piscataqua River, in the northeastern United States, is a long tidal estuary formed by the confluence of the Salmon Falls and Cocheco rivers...

 between Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the largest city but only the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 21,233 at the 2010 census...

 and Kittery, Maine

Kittery, Maine

Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 9,543 at the 2000 census. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals...

. The bridge is a double deck truss bridge

Truss bridge

A truss bridge is a bridge composed of connected elements which may be stressed from tension, compression, or sometimes both in response to dynamic loads. Truss bridges are one of the oldest types of modern bridges...

, with the US 1 Bypass road deck above and a railroad bed below.

The bridge features two separate movable spans. While the main lift span and its towers are the obvious primary moving feature, the second moving span is only apparent to water and rail traffic. On the north side of the bridge, the first non-trussed section of rail bed lifts up and moves south as a retractable bridge

Retractable bridge

A retractable bridge is a type of movable bridge in which the deck can be rolled or slid backwards to open a gap for crossing traffic, usually a ship on a waterway. This type is sometimes referred to as a thrust bridge....

, coming to rest on top of the rail tracks inside the truss. This creates a waterway large enough for most recreational boats to pass through without the need for interruption of automobile traffic on the bridge.

History

Completed in 1940, the bridge is the second to carry motor vehicle traffic between Maine and New Hampshire at Portsmouth, and replaced a river crossing dating from 1822. The bridge was the direct result of the work of the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority, which had been formed in 1937. The major goal of the bridge project was to relieve congestion in downtown Portsmouth and Kittery, where US 1

U.S. Route 1

U.S. Route 1 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs 2,377 miles from Fort Kent, Maine at the Canadian border south to Key West, Florida. U.S. 1 generally parallels Interstate 95, though it is significantly farther west between...

 crossed the river via the Memorial Bridge

Memorial Bridge (Portsmouth, New Hampshire)

The Memorial Bridge is a through truss lift bridge that carried U.S. 1 across the Piscataqua River between Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Badger's Island in Kittery, Maine USA. The bridge was closed permanently to vehicle traffic on July 27, 2011, with a replacement to be built by 2014.The lift span...

, which had opened in 1923.

From 1960 until 1972, the bridge, along with the US 1 Bypass north of the Portsmouth Circle

Portsmouth Traffic Circle

The Portsmouth Traffic Circle is a four-point rotary in the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire.-Description:The southern exit of the circle provides access to Interstate 95 north and south, although only northbound I-95 traffic enters here. The eastern and northern exits are part of the U.S. Route 1...

, filled a gap in Interstate 95

Interstate 95

Interstate 95 is the main highway on the East Coast of the United States, running parallel to the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to Florida and serving some of the most populated urban areas in the country, including Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore,...

, which had been designated along both the New Hampshire Turnpike and the Maine Turnpike. Although most of the Bypass is four lanes wide, the bridge itself originally had only a three-lane roadbed, with traffic on the center lane switching direction depending on load (the bridge has since been reduced to just two lanes). This, combined with being a drawbridge, placed the bridge far below Interstate highway standards

Interstate Highway standards

Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in the publication A Policy on Design Standards - Interstate System...

. The turnpikes, and therefore I-95 in the two states, did not directly connect until the opening of the Piscataqua River Bridge

Piscataqua River Bridge

The Piscataqua River Bridge is a cantilevered through arch bridge that crosses the Piscataqua River, connecting Portsmouth, New Hampshire with Kittery, Maine. Carrying six lanes of Interstate 95, the bridge is the third modern span and first fixed crossing of the Piscataqua between Portsmouth and...

 and the extensions of I-95 leading to it in the early 1970s.

Railroad

The railroad track that runs across the bridge was originally part of the Boston & Maine Railroad, and connected to South Berwick via an easement that is now Rt. 236. The bridge replaced a railroad trestle that was located just upriver. The trestle collapsed on September 10, 1939, sending the engine (B&M #3666) and baggage car to the bottom of the river, where they remain. It had been weakened when a caisson used in the construction of the new bridge dragged its anchor cables, which pulled out several of the trestle's bents.

Currently, the tracks lead only to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard , often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard located in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It is used for remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships...

 in Kittery, and are used for the transportation of nuclear materials.

Naming

For many years, the bridge was simply known as the "Maine-New Hampshire (Interstate) Bridge". In 1987, the bridge was renamed to honor Sarah M. Long, who had been an employee of the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority for 50 years. Starting with the agency in 1937 when the Authority was created, Ms. Long filled a number of positions, from secretary to executive director.

Due to its location in Portsmouth Harbor between the Memorial Bridge and the Piscataqua River Bridge, the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge is sometimes simply referred to as "the middle bridge" or "the old toll bridge."

Maintenance

As of January 2008, New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

 is planning to take control of the bridge from the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority so that it can spend an estimated $1.2 million to repair the bridge.http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/01/24/long_time_coming_a_fix_for_long_bridge_between_nh_maine/ A bill passed by the New Hampshire Senate

New Hampshire Senate

The New Hampshire Senate has been meeting since 1784. It is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court. It consists of 24 members representing Senate districts based on population...

 contemplates splitting maintenance costs with Maine

Maine

Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

, pending approval by the United States Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

 to dissolve the Authority.

External links

• gencourt.state.nh.us Legislation outlining the formation of the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority.
• massroads.com More pictures of the bridge, including the movable rail section in the closed position.