Tower Bridge (California)

Infobox Bridge
bridge_name = Tower Bridge

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caption = The Tower Bridge just after sunset
carries = Cars, pedestrians, and previously railroad
crosses = Sacramento River
maint = Caltrans [National Bridge Inventory database, 2006]
locale = West Sacramento and Sacramento, California
design = vertical lift bridge
length = 737 feet (225 m)
width = 52 feet (16 m)
clearance =
below = 100 feet (30.5 m) above high water
open = December 15 1935
coordinates = coord|38|34|50|N|121|30|30|W|type:landmark|display=inline,title
lat = 38.58
long = -121.5083The Tower Bridge is a vertical lift bridge crossing the Sacramento River, linking West Sacramento in Yolo County to the west, with the capital of California, Sacramento, in Sacramento County to the east. It was previously a part of U.S. Route 40 until that highway was truncated east of Salt Lake City. The bridge is still maintained by the California Department of Transportation as part of State Route 275. It connects West Capitol Avenue and Tower Bridge Gateway in West Sacramento with the Capitol Mall in Sacramento.

History

Need for the bridge

In March 1926, construction was completed on the M Street Bridge in Sacramento. Seven years later, in 1933, the city realized that it needed a better crossing over the Sacramento River in case of war,Fact|date=September 2007 and that the existing bridge was highly inadequate to handle heavy traffic.

On December 22 1933, the State of California, Sacramento County, and the Sacramento Northern Electric Railroad (later the Sacramento Northern Railway) held a conference to plan the new bridge.

Design

It was to be 52 feet (16 m) wide, with four lanes for cars, and one large center lane for trains. The towers are 160 feet (49 m) tall. The bridge style represents a rare use of Streamline Moderne architectural styling in a lift bridge, making it an outstanding expression of the social and architectural climate of the period of construction.

On December 15, 1935, then-governor Frank Merriam dedicated the bridge. The Tower Bridge was the first vertical lift bridge in the California Highway System.

Repainting the bridge

For years, the bridge was painted silver, but people complained about glare off the bridge. In June 1976 it was painted a yellow-ochre color, to be representative of the gold leafed cupola on the nearby State Capitol

In 2001, as the old paint job could hardly be distinguished, residents who lived within convert|35|mi|km of the capital voted on a new color scheme. Their choices were burgundy, green, silver and gold; or all gold. The winning color was all gold, and it was repainted in 2002. However, that did not lessen the bridge's color controversy. Some people complained that the new paint wasn't as gilded as advertised. The new coat is expected to last 30 years.

Currently, the bridge is used for pedestrian and vehicle traffic only. In 2007, regional transportation agencies were considering the possibility of adding trolley traffic across the bridge. [http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/172606.html]

ymbolic use

The Tower Bridge has become the de-facto icon of Sacramento. It's silhouette is often integrated into the logos of local private businesses. It is also used prominently by many of the local news organizations.

The Tower Bridge is similar to the vertical lift bridge as seen in the Grand Theft Auto III rendition of Liberty City.

ources

* [http://home.pacbell.net/hywaymn/tower_bridge_history.htm History of the Tower Bridge]
* [http://www.uscg.mil/d11/dp/dpw/BRIDGE/AUXBridges/Bridgefiles/Aux36TowerBridge.pdf Report of Bridge Survey from the U.S. Coast Guard]
*

References

External links

* [http://www.sactowerbridge.org/ SacTowerBridge.org]

Crossings navbox
structure = Crossings
place = Sacramento River
bridge = Tower Bridge
bridge signs =
upstream = I Street Bridge
upstream signs =
downstream = Pioneer Memorial Bridge
downstream signs =