This bridge has always scared the hell out of me

[CatWoman]

and now, more so......



The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. The Bay on one side, the Atlantic on the other. It's about 20 miles long, and connects mainland Virginia with the Maryland Eastern Shore.


Driving on the bridge, it looks like you can stop your car and lean over and dip your hands in the water.

[Selatius]

1. If civilization collapsed tomorrow, that bridge would be unsafe in 20 years or less without repairs

Ocean water + steel beams = rust

[MissB]

2. Looks very cool.

The only drawback would be being on the bridge or in the tunnel if it failed.

[CatWoman]

4. there are two tunnels

see the gap between them?

that's so large ships can pass thru.

the tunnels are on the bottom of the water.

[MissB]

6. It would all be over with very quickly.

[insane_cratic_gal]

122. those tunnels use to terrify me!

My hubby and I use to live in Norfolk had passed a time or two through those tunnels and over the bridge, and I hated them.

Use to scare the crap out of me. I'm already slightly irrational about heights, so I'm not fan of Bridges. I liked this one less while not high, you were surround by water!

I was always waiting for the tunnels to spring leaks and flood. It's like a bad disaster movie waiting to happen.

Now we've moved to western PA and I have these to fuss about when ever we go into Pittsburgh.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. The one to PEI is like that but shorter. The one that scares me is

[babylonsister]

5. I almost lost my cookies on that bridge. DH had

:blush: fuzzy dice :blush: hanging off his rear view mirror, and I couldn't take it!

[bleedingheart]

7. JVS and I can trump that one...

<>

this is the Greenfield bridge over the Parkway in Pittsburgh...

That net is to keep the concrete from falling off directly into traffic...and the bridge under it is to catch concrete as it falls too...

Now get this...people drive over the Parkway using that bridge...every day...

[MissB]

9. Doesn't look too high off the ground.

:rofl: I kid, I kid.

[madrchsod]

24. black duck tape?

[JVS]

27. I use that bridge whenever I go into Oakland or Sq Hill

Murray Avenue and the long hill up bates are strictly for suckers. Going through the park at a leisurely clip is what the driving goodlife is all about.

[napi21]

75. Dp you remember the OLD 62nd Street Bridge?

It spaned the Allegheny from Sharpsburg toward East Liberty. I can still remember that rickety old thing. The bridge bed was some kind of iron grating that you could see through down into the river, and it had a lot of iron plates that I think were there to repair some rusting iron underneath them. It rattled and chattered ans shook as you drove or walked across it!

It was torn down back in the early 60's and replaced by the Flemming bridge.

[trumad]

8. I've always been terrified of this one.

[CatWoman]

10. are those trolls I see under there?????

:hi:

[devilgrrl]

53. I see these guys...

[Tesha]

97. Nahhh -- the troll's under *THIS* one...

And he's got a *VOLKSWAGEN*!!!

[Cooley Hurd]

12. That one scares me the least...

...however, the scariest bridge is this one that has the most warnings about it:

The Tappan Zee Bridge has been slated for replacement for YEARS!

[JohnShadows]

116. Aw, c'mon. Only a liberal sissy couldn't get his ..

... big 'ol SUV over that one. :sarcasm:

[woodsprite]

11. Thanks guys! We're driving on that one tomorrow

:eyes:

Heading down to Hatteras on a much-needed, postponed-out-the-whazoo vacation. Which reminds me, they'll be another couple we need to go over...

Actually, the CBBT has had major renovation done in the last few years. Maybe it'll actually be DONE this year when we go down. It beats dealing with I-95 traffic. Notice how many people aren't on that bridge? The tolls get 'ya. I think for our truck/trailer it's about $20.

[EFerrari]

13. I was always afraid of the Cypress and in 1989, it pancaked in the quake

This thing used to have two levels. Once you were on, there was no way to pull over or get off. :scared:

[Garbo 2004]

63. I NEVER trusted that...as a little kid I used to freak when my parents drove on the lower deck.

They thought I was nuts of course, but I never trusted those columns & told them so. Also in areas of similar style/contruction in SF. This puzzled them since I was fine on other spans, bridges (like the lower deck of the Bay Bridge) & loved the bay area tunnels.

When I was older I still had a spooky ooky feeling whenver I had to drive on it & just hoped a serious earthquake wouldn't hit when I was on it. The top deck as I recall had a bouncy ride which was fun, but a tad disturbing too. I was horrified when I saw my feelings about that section of freeway confirmed in '89.

[EFerrari]

77. I was only a few weeks out of being there exactly when the quake hit.

I went back to school after commuting to the south bay for several years. During that quake, my house in Berkeley slid a little on its foundation but the Cypress upset me so much more because it always felt like a death trap and it pancaked at exactly the drive time that I had been driving it for years.

[TahitiNut]

14. I've done that one ... D.C. to Baltimore and back. Fuuuuun! Coool!

:silly:

[TahitiNut]

15. Here's the bridge I don't look forward to using ....

[CatWoman]

18. Ok, Trumad Jr.

:rofl:

[trumad]

21. Here's a bridge I bet you wouldn't mind riding on....

[CatWoman]

23. I was more partial to his dad

[TahitiNut]

37. Shirley, you jest.

:rofl:


Sea Hunt!!! Woweee!

[CatWoman]

42. Heh!!

Have you seen "Mafia!"???

:rofl:

Don Cluezeo :rofl:

[lonestarnot]

20. LOL

[malaise]

16. This one scared me big time

but Anna Maria island in Florida was worth it.

[A HERETIC I AM]

55. That bridge replaced another famous callapse. Ths Sunshine Skyway collapse in 1980

One span of the bridge went down after being struck by a ship

[malaise]

99. My sister told me about that disaster

It's a beautiful bridge but driving over so much water does not thrill me too much.

[Poiuyt]

121. That bridge used to terrify me as a child

It seemed like we were driving straight up a wall.

We used it to go from St Pete's Beach to Bradenton to watch the Milwaukee Braves spring training. I should post our home movies of Hank Aaron on youtube.

[Rhiannon12866]

136. My Dad insisted on driving over that one when I was a kid, and I know what you mean.

I remember seeing it from a distance and it looked like you'd be driving straight up. I don't remember where we were going, but I think that my Dad just wanted to drive over it, maybe to entertain us... Maybe that's where I got my phobia about bridges...:scared:

[UnyieldingHierophant]

123. Went across that one just two weeks ago*

[KT2000]

17. Portland,. Oregon

There is a bridge there where the entrance cloverleaf ascends and the actual bridge is very high! That's the one that scares the crap out of me.

[windbreeze]

65. St. Johns????? scary...absolutely scary...n/t

[KT2000]

85. Not sure

It is a double decker. I just know that every time I drive down there - I end up on it!
Some day I will figure out another route!

[Quantess]

100. Sounds a little like Marquam Bridge, that is part of the I-5

It's hard to avoid.

[hfojvt]

80. They have (or had) a bridge in the Twin Cities called 'high bridge'

I walked across it once, and it is very high above the river. Scary high for a guy like me with acrophobia. I think they closed it though, in the mid 80s for safety reasons.

[grasswire]

82. the Marquam?

It scares the bejabbers out of me.

[grasswire]

83. or this?

Fremont Bridge, Portland.

[KT2000]

87. Pretty sure it's this one!

It manages to encompass the "claustrophobia/heights/speeding cars/hurdling through space" experience.

Thanks for the pictures - I don't think it's the Fremont but that one looks awful too.

[lonestarnot]

19. Nugggggggggh ughhhhhhhhhh. Would never get on dat thing!

[Subdivisions]

22. That brings back some fond memories! I have about

17 years altogether in the Tidewater area and I absolutely love it there. I've been over that thing many times and it only scared me once during a blue-norther.

Do you live near the CBBT, CatWoman?

[CatWoman]

I was born in Portsmouth

and raised in both Portsmouth and Brooklyn.

I can remember riding the ferry boat over the Chesapeake :)

My daughter and grandkids still live in Portsmouth, and other family is scattered around Tidewater.

[Subdivisions]

30. I grew up in Newport News and then moved to Texas.

I came back as an adult for several years and my two daughters now live in Hampton with their mother. I was just there a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't make it out to the eastern shore. I did make it out by the CBBT though while out fishing for flounder on my aunt's husband's boat!

[CatWoman]

33. There is nothing

i mean NOTHING like a sun rise on the Eastern Shore :)

[Lugnut]

38. You betcha

I've been fortunate to capture a few of them on film over the years. It's our favorite vacation spot.

[indepat]

25. In my dozens of trips to the Washington D.C-area, have never had the guts to travel

that stretch.

[ThomWV]

26. You ought to see it when there's a Gale blowing. It will scare the shit out of you.

[CatWoman]

29. speaking of strong winds

you can actually feel the Verrazano Bridge swaying

[smokey nj]

57. Yes.

That's the other bridge I have to cross when we visit my mother-in-law.

[TheCowsCameHome]

28. I've always gone on route 13 just to use it.

[Bitwit1234]

31. I didn't like the Chesapeake Bay Bridge from Maryland to the Eastern Shore

The several times I went over it I sat in the car floor. Silly but I just didn't like it. Althought I ever drove over the Delaware Memorial Bridge. I got in the middle land stayed there and didn't look anyplace except straight ahead.

[NashVegas]

32. I Drove That Once

The bay was sort of rough that day. I couldn't wait to be off of it.

Then there's this:







http://www.lessons-from-history.com/Images/Great%20Projects/millau%20bridge2.bmp

[CatWoman]

34. holy shit!!!

what the hell is THAT?????

[NashVegas]

35. Millau Viaduct

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millau_Viaduct

On the plus side, it's new, and it saves you from having to take the curvy mountain down.

[Occulus]

61. The Royal Gorge Bridge had that beat for height

From the Wiki:

The Royal Gorge Bridge is a tourist attraction near Cañon City, Colorado, within a 360 acre (1.5 km²) theme park, hanging 1,053 feet (321 m) above the Arkansas River and billed as the highest suspension bridge in the world. The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad runs under the bridge along the base of Royal Gorge. The bridge is 880 feet (268 m) long but only 18 feet (5 m) wide, with a wooden walkway with over 1000 planks. The bridge is suspended from towers that are 150 feet (46 m) high.

The bridge was constructed in six months, between June 5, 1929 and November 1929, as a one-lane toll bridge, at a cost of $350,000. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The bridge was not constructed for transportation purposes; instead, it was built with the intent that it serve as a tourist attraction, and has continued to be one of the most-visited tourist attractions in Colorado since its construction.

The cable-stayed Viaduc de Millau, completed in December 2004, is the tallest bridge in the world, at 1,118 feet (341 m), but its road/vehicle deck is only 885 ft (270 m) above the River Tarn. The Royal Gorge Bridge is still the highest suspension bridge in the world, as well as the bridge with the highest deck-to-surface clearance.

But the Viaduc de Millau has the Royal Gorge Bridge beat just for impressiveness. I mean, holy crap.

[InkAddict]

62. Been there, done that Royal Gorge.

Is it paved now? It was wide wooden planks for pedestrian traffic only when I was there '67?

[proud2BlibKansan]

98. We were there a couple years ago and it was stll wooden planks

and it was creepy :scared:

[windbreeze]

76. I'm so sorry...I'll take the curvy mountain every time...

there is NO WAY I would get on that bridge, no matter how much I may admire the ingenuity of it...I have been on some pretty hairy bridges...Golden Gate, Oakland Bay, Tacoma Narrows...Mackinac Straits, Rainbow Bridge at Niagara Falls..St.Johns in Portland, Oregon, (all the bridges in Portland)the one going from Washington over the Columbia River to Astoria, Ore....All the bridges going from Pa to NJ...the one between Detroit to Windsor, (or was it Pt.Huron to...it was shaped like a huge upside down U in the middle)plus some of the ones in NYC, been over the Mississippi, Missouri, Columbia, Snake, Powder, Yellowstone, and various other rivers/bays in between...but this one...no fucking way..I get rattled just looking at the pictures...I'd either have to be drunk, blindfolded or both..wb

[Eurobabe]

90. I just TiVo'd a boatload of Bridge shows from Nat Geo

channel. One was the construction of the Millau bridge.

How coincidental is it that NG has all these bridge episodes on this week? Including some nasty bridge in Washington State that blew apart in the wind?

:tinfoilhat:

[marions ghost]

94. That Millau Viaduct

thing is sculpture and an amazing feat of engineering & all....

But how necessary is it?

The landscape below doesn't look too hard to traverse with the usual types of bridges and roads.

It seems pretty extravagant.

Was there no objection to its building?

[NashVegas]

101. You Know How Boys Are

The Wiki page on it shows a satellite map of the area. If bypassing the village was the intention, it looks like they could have diverted the route east, around the mountain - although I can't tell how many miles that would have gone off natural course.

[marions ghost]

102. Oh yeah...

many examples-- the skyscrapers that get higher and higher for no good reason, oddities like the Sydney Opera House, the Great Wall of China & the terracotta soldiers, & all the huge "earthworks" sculptural extravaganzas of the 60's and 70's, etc.

I have nothing against impractical things. But I do see them as kind of humorous & fascinatingly obsessive.

I'm thinking this Viaduct is one of those "Wonders of the World" attractions. France doesn't seem to have any big bodies of water to go over so I guess they went for the world's most impressive flyover...

[NashVegas]

106. I Was Mainly Thinking

Of the vertical things :)

Other flights of fancy, I'm totally down with.

[Longhorn]

115. Apparently, it saves about an hour of driving time.

And the winding roads it replaced were not handling all of the traffic very well. My boss is from France and she was filling me in.

[marions ghost]

118. Seems to me

judging from that not very steep landscape, they could have put in a conventional road with small bridges. All that just to save an hour of driving time? That wouldn't be the best return on such an investment.

I think there's more going on than that...a lot of these things get built as an attraction, a challenge to engineers, a showpiece. When you (as a nation) prove you can build such impossible things, it's kind of inspiring...certainly it's a beautiful structure. It's symbolic. We've been doing stuff like that for centuries.

I'm not against it, I just don't see it as really necessary, looking at that terrain.

[EFerrari]

36. I think there are just some places we aren't supposed to go.

lol

[marions ghost]

49. not photoshop?

No, I see it's in France.

OMG--No Way.

I assume there is an alternate ground route?

That is MUCH scarier than the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.

[Maru Kitteh]

78. POOPSTICKS!

Holy mother of pearl!

[LTR]

39. Here's a scary one - the Hoan Bridge in Milwaukee

Not just because it's so damn high, as you can see here:



Here's what it looks like driving up it:



The scary thing is that this thing almost collapsed:





The bridge started to fall apart a few years ago, and required emergency destruction and repair.





The stubs of this bridge are where part of the chase in the movie "The Blues Brothers" was filmed. Remember those police cars that fell off the ramps? Yep, that's I-794.

Read more:

http://www.wisconsinhighways.org/indepth/hoan_bridge.html
http://www2.jsonline.com/news/metro/dec00/hoan23122200.asp

[CatWoman]

41. So THAT'S where that car chase was filmed????

One of the best car chases I've ever seen :rofl:

"I've always loved you"

:rofl:

[King Coal]

105. Have you ever seen the 32nd Street bridge in Durango?

It's something less than Awesome.

:hi:

[likesmountains 52]

139. agreed, but the Main Street bridge is pretty cool..

[eleny]

40. I loved the drive over that bridge

But my hubby shares your feeling about it. His deal is mostly about the water since he doesn't swim well. But I gotta tell ya, I loved driving over it.

[tigereye]

43. when I was a kid going to Rehoboth with my parents

I was sure that bridge went into the water - it just looked so long...

I still don't like driving over it when we have traveled to Bethany Beach in more recent years.


I've been on the bridge over to Hatteras as well. I don't like how you can look down into the water from that one, either.

:scared:

of course I now live in Pittsburgh which has more bridges than many American, if not world, cities. :shrug:

[alfredo]

44. The Clays Ferry Bridge on I 75 in Central Kentucky. What scares me is

that a fault line runs right between the two spans. A new bridge was added between the two older bridges. The new bridge has the solid column.



To the south underneath the bridge the fault is visible. On the up side, there is a clay bank that is like heaven for fossil hunters. Most of what you find in this area are from 400 to 450 million years old.



This is the one lane bridge you have to use to access the clay banks. It's character building on an icy morning.


It's not as old as the fossil, but it's getting there.

[Beausoir]

45. Yep! I've been thinking about that bridge all day. One scary looking ride.

[TZ]

46. I actually prefer that one to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Annapolis

Maybe because I am afraid of heights and the Bay Bridge is wayyy up there. Have you ever driven that bridge on a foggy/misty day? Its REALLY eerie. I have only been over the bridge/tunnel one twice. I want to go back and visit the island in the middle...:)

[grasswire]

84. oh yeah!

I remember that one. On Route 50. I wouldn't want to try to get out of Ocean City in a bad storm, no no no.

[regnaD kciN]

133. Agreed...

Have you ever driven that bridge on a foggy/misty day?

Yep (although I was a passenger, not the driver). The day before Thanksgiving, 1976. In a secondhand mail truck with a very high center of gravity and right-hand drive with no mirror on the left side. (Seriously, if you wanted to merge left, one of the passengers had to stick his or her head out the left side window to see if the coast was clear.) We were stuck in the rightmost lane of the bridge and, when we hit that big, sweeping curve way up over the bay, I was sure we were going to flip right over the railing.
:scared:

It took me several years before I could bring myself to drive that bridge, even in a normal compact auto.

[ironflange]

47. I'm not too crazy about this one

I don't even have a favourite colour!

[marions ghost]

48. I've been over it in a snow storm...(at night) once

young and foolish.

A couple years ago I was supposed to go over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and there was a strong northeaster blowing. We had one of those 12" inch high vinyl rooftop bags on the car, so weren't allowed to cross. Only vehicles without anything at all on the roof were allowed. That's how fine is the line.

You really have to watch out for seagulls crossing this thing.

When they built the first span (late 60's) nine people died in the construction of it.

A number of people have driven off it. :(

It's kind of fun when the weather is nice, though.

[marions ghost]

60. oh yeah

I forgot to say that when I went over it during the snow storm at night, it was in a decrepit VW beetle with water in the gas line and the engine conked out at least once. I think I want to forget that. They shouldn't have allowed idiots like that younger me & my friend to cross that night.

[B Calm]

50. I went over the tunnel part when I was in the Navy...

[B Calm]

51. The Mackinac Bridge is 50 years old this year.

[Siyahamba]

68. I knew the Mighty Mac would show up in here sooner or later.

:rofl:

[Longhorn]

72. I've heard some people hire professional drivers to take them over that bridge!

Apparently, some folks just freeze!

[devilgrrl]

52. I drove over that once...

freaked my shit OUT! :scared:

[smokey nj]

54. This is the Bayonne Bridge. My husband and I cross it everytime we visit my mother-in-law in

Brooklyn. It was hit by a ship a few years back, until yesterday I never really gave it any thought. Now I have another reason to dread going to my mother-in-law's house.

[Jennicut]

58. Oh yes, the Bayonne Bridge

I crossed under it back in May this year on a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Caribbean. My sister-in-law and I felt like we were going to hit the bridge because the boat we were on, Explorer of the Seas is huge. I had no idea a boat has hit that bridge before. Makes me think flying to Florida for a cruise is better than leaving out of the port at Cape Liberty. Also, ta really scary bridge to me has always been the Seven Mile Bridge to the Florida Keys. Never been on it and never plan to. Its something like 6.7 miles long. Eek!

[smokey nj]

59. It hasn't been hit by a cruise ship....yet, it was a commercial barge like the one in the picture.

I don't want to detract from our "booming" tourist industry. I wish I'd known you were coming to my fair city. I would have given you a tour of our .99 stores and tanning salons.

Edited to add: It was also the bridge that was destroyed in Steven Spielberg's "The War of the Worlds"

[Canuckistanian]

56. There's a bridge in Montréal

The Victoria Bridge, I think.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Bridge%2C_Montreal

And it doesn't have a paved surface - just a metal grid to drive on.

You can see the water underneath you as you drive.

[begin_within]

64. Tacoma Narrows anyone?

Color footage:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=P0Fi1VcbpAI

[opiate69]

69. Yeah.. but the new one's pretty nice!

[begin_within]

70. Beautiful with the lighting.

[opiate69]

73. Yeah.. I'm really hoping they can come up with the money to keep it lit..

driving into the Nisqually valley on northbound 5 at night when they had it lit was really pretty..

[regnaD kciN]

134. I think the lighting was only for construction purposes...

...and won't be used now that the bridge is open.

[opiate69]

137. True, however..

there's a group who are trying to raise private funds to install and maintain lights for it..
http://www.narrowsbridgelights.org/

[Kool Kitty]

81. Poor Galloping Gertie!

That video makes me queasy.

[Eurobabe]

91. That's the one! It was on NatGeo this AM, along with

Millau Viaduct

[regnaD kciN]

135. FWIW, the older of the two current Tacoma Narrows bridges...

...(the one now carrying traffic out of Tacoma) was built on the piers of the infamous "Galloping Gertie." Those were the only parts of that bridge that could be salvaged.

One of the ironies of the original Narrows Bridge collapse is that, from almost immediately after it opened, architectural consultants were at work trying to figure out how to fix its instability. In the first week of December, a group from UW found the problem, and figured out a way to fix it. They contacted the state's Department of Transportation, and it was agreed that they'd begin retrofitting the bridge within ten days. Everyone was happy that the problem was going to be fixed. Three days later, the storm hit. :-(

[pinniped]

88. The History Channel's Engineering Disasters had that shoddy bridge covered.

.

[SoCalDem]

66. We used to cross a bridge in Panama that had piles of planks

on both ends.. why?

because to drive it, you had to carefully place the planks where the wheels would go, drive a bit and then move planks..

My dad would drive the car, and the family would gingerly walk it , stepping over the "airy" spots where you could see the Chagres river chugging along underneath..

all this for a primeval deserted beach :)

looked kind of like this..only with flat planks :scared:

[Longhorn]

67. How about le Viaduc de Millau in France?

The Millau Viaduct (French: le Viaduc de Millau) is a large cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the River Tarn near Millau in southern France. Designed by English architect Norman Foster and French bridge engineer Michel Virlogeux, it is the tallest vehicular bridge in the world, with one pier's summit at 343 metres (1,125 ft)—slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower and only 38 m (125 ft) shorter than the Empire State Building. The viaduct is part of the A75-A71 autoroute axis from Paris to Béziers. It was formally dedicated on 14 December 2004 and opened to traffic two days later.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millau_Viaduct

[NashVegas]

107. up thread discussion

starts here - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1499996#1500306

[Longhorn]

114. Oh, I missed that. Thanks! nt

[begin_within]

71. A few more scary ones...

[opiate69]

74. Oh yeah..that Petronas Tower skywalk is NUTS!

[TwilightGardener]

79. Scary bridges: Charleston's old highway 17 drawbridge (to Mt. Pleasant), and

New River Gorge Bridge in WV. Didn't like those for some reason.

[JohnShadows]

117. The old Charleston bridge ..

... used to scare the hell out of me driving over it as a kid. That thing would sway, dude. I know someone who broke down on it - you know how narrow it is, can you imagine being out there with trucks rolling by you for about an hour?

[RexDart]

86. Fernbridge in California used to spook me.

First attempt at posting pictures. Please hold.



The bridge itself is solid, and I'm willing to guess that it will still be standing when the sun goes red giant. But...


It's very narrow and has these cattle chute ramps that make it impossible to see what's on the bridge until you're on top of it.






It was, however, the last landmark before my grandmothers house, so I was always happy to cross it.

[KharmaTrain]

89. What? No SF-Oakland Bay Bridge???

I saw a mention about the Cypress Expressway, but that's gone, the Bay Bridge is still creeking. Last summer I took my first and only ride across the bridge and all I kept thinking about was the poor schmuck who fell into the Bay in '89 and all the stories about problems with the bridge. On the way back, I decided to swing around to the north...through Vallejo into Marin County and back into the city via the Golden Gate.

[salin]

93. I lived on the Penninsula in the 90s - and if I had to cross the Bay -

I always crossed on one of the bridges further South. I "rode" (not me driving) on the Bay Bridge a couple of times - and it always was creepy.

For about six months my commute had me going across the Golden Gate Bridge- which was only a pain - when one had to go through the Tunnel at Mt. Tam - seems it is a big thing to "Honk in Tunnell" - and during stop and go rush hour traffic, it could get quite annoying.

[KharmaTrain]

95. The Timing Of This Is So Ironic...

We're planning a trip to NYC and part of my research was on the bridges...I just recorded a show off National Geographic that was excellent. These bridges are really a marvel of man's ingenuity and the bridges across the Misssissippi are a unique breed indeed. I always got a "charge" (and still do), when you hit the bluffs above the river and soar over it.

At least you didn't have to use the Fort Point tunnel...I got stuck forever at a light there.

Have a great weekend...sorry you're not here to enjoy Yearly Kos...

:toast:

[VTMechEngr]

92. One correction Catwoman - Virginia Eastern shore, not Md.

Once you cross the bridge, its 100 miles to Maryland.

[RebelOne]

96. The scariest bridge was the old 7-Mile Bridge in the Fla. Keys.

It had only two very narrow lanes. Finally, the new one was built in the '70s. I went over the old bridge on the back of a motorcycle when I was in my teens. Now, that was one really frightening ride!

[malaise]

103. Catwoman this is a wonderful thread

The most interesting and deadly bridge in Jamaica is the Bog Walk bridge There are no side railings on this concrete bridge which only carries one-way traffic. The form of this structure has protected it against the power of the water. There have been times, even in modern history, when a "50 foot wall of water" has roared through the Bog Walk gorge. Once the Rio Cobre River is in spate, this bridge is closed but over the years dozens have people have died attempting to cross during high water as their vehicles end up in the river. There are now traffic lights at both ends since stupid drivers often attempted to enter the bridge when a vehicle was already crossing from the other side. Flat Bridge is one of the world's historic bridges.







http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20031122T230000-0500_51980_OBS_NWA_STILL_WITHOUT_DESIGN_PLAN__FUNDS_TO_WIDEN_FLAT_BRIDGE.asp

Here is a nice web site on Historic bridges.
http://www.iceandcoal.org/bridges/bridgenewsarchive/november2003.html

Add link

[JHB]

104. I hate various skyway bridges where you can't see any support structure from the road...

...all you see is the highway you're on angle up and then disappear.

Give me a suspension bridge with support structures for all to see any day of the week (and twice on Sundays).

[bigwillq]

108. It scares me too

I hated driving over it when we went to VA Beach....well I wasn't driving but even as a passenger it was scary.

[slackmaster]

109. Here's the one I drive nearly every day that scares me

Interstate 805 crossing over Mission Valley (including I-8 and the San Diego River), San Diego, California. The image doesn't really do justice to the frightening drop just beyond low guard rails for most of the span.



The bridge has been retrofitted for seismic safety in the wake of the Northridge earthquake, but it's still scary.

[Neshanic]

126. That one is a big one. Coming up on the Northbound ramps is hairy.

[slackmaster]

110. Here's a REALLY scary bridge in Los Angeles

The Shakespeare Bridge: (image not linkable, please click...)

http://a3.vox.com/6a00c2251e7a348e1d00d414174e03685e-500pi

(You may recognize it as the entrance to the witch's castle in The Wizard of Oz.)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

111. Rio-Niterói Bridge

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio-Niter%C3%B3i_Bridge

"It is 13,290 m (8.25 miles) long - 8,836 m (5.49 miles) over water - and is referred to as "the national pride of engineering", as it has the highest central span in the world, 72 m (236.22 feet) high, in order to allow passage to the hundreds of ships that enter and leave the bay every month."

Pic: http://tinyurl.com/2o5m6f (I don't embed it coz it'd fuck up the page width)

[Virginia Dare]

112. It's a white knuckler for sure..

I remember as a kid we used to drive that quite often on vacations. We always used to all take a deep breath and say "here we go" after we passed through that toll booth. The tunnel is almost scarier than the bridge IMO.

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Maryland is the opposite, it's so high up, lots of people who are afraid of heights can't drive it. They have escorts who will take you across, too many people were stopping right in the middle and freaking out.

[Supersedeas]

113. Interesting news and review of several bridges in the link below: maybe one near you

http://www.iceandcoal.org/bridges/bridgenews.html

[Poiuyt]

119. Did anyone see the movie "The Sorcerer?"

[beastieboy]

120. I recommend you keep a centerpunch on your visor.

You can get spring loaded ones designed to punch through the windshield easily. Clip it to your visor and if your car is ever submerged, you can pop your window in less a second.

[insane_cratic_gal]

124. I have all of these bridges to look forward to

Welcome to Pittsburgh PA

[Neshanic]

125. Try the Coronado Bridge in San Diego. NOT for the faint of heart!

Very narrow, VERY high, no supports that show above the deck, and it turns...

Go to Google for pictures, I went over that, and the lack of any overhead anything. I am not sqeamish crossing bridges, but this one did it for me.

[slackmaster]

129. But the view is fantastic!

[Rhiannon12866]

132. I've been over that one, too! I was scared and insisted that my friend stay in the inside lane.

He got chewed out on the other side because he was supposed to be in the outside carpool lane...:blush:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

127. This one's my favorite.

And it had a cameo in the horror movie "The Ring."

[CatWoman]

128. oh

My!!! :wow:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

130. The pictures don't do it justice.

Half of Puget Sound flows in and out of that narrow passage with every tide, creating thirty mile per hour currents, whirpools, and downdrafts that have killed many scuba divers. You can walk out in the middle and look hundreds of feet down to see sea lions playing in the water way, way down below you. And they look so peaceful you almost want to jump in and play with them. "Come play with us, Catwoman" the sea lions say, "the water's fine."

[opiate69]

138. A couple friends of mine climed out to the middle of the understructure...

fucking nuts!

[Rhiannon12866]

131. I went across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, years ago, with my father. I sat in the back, on the floor.

I sure don't blame you, but I have a phobia about bridges. This one is near me and the last time I drive over it by myself, I had an anxiety attack, took an alternate route home...:blush::scared: