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| 2005.10.22 - A drive over the Tacoma Narrows Bridge | ||||||||
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I had a meeting in Gig Harbor, so I had the opportunity to drive over the
Tacoma Narrows Bridge. I hadn't done that in quite some time, so I
was looking forward to seeing how far they'd come on the construction of
the new bridge.
The existing bridge is still known as "Galloping Gertie", a reference to the first Tacoma Narrows Bridge, which collapsed less than a year after its completion due to high winds.
See more in the History entry: |
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The Narrows bridge was built for traffic in the 50's, and what they thought they would need in the foreseeable future. Problem is, no one came close with their estimates of how the area would boom! | |||||||
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Traffic delays quickly became the "norm" for traffic over the bridge... it was handling 2-3 times more traffic than it, and the roads were designed for. The new bridge will house a set of reversible "High Occupancy Vehicle" lanes, as well as traffic heading into Tacoma. |
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Its interesting to drive over the bridge from time to time, and see how
much progress they've made. I hadn't done it in a long time, and
I'm surprised at the amount of progress! They're string the suspension cables one strand at a time. That part is going slower than they'd like. When I drove by, there was a problem with the cart. |
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The new bridge will be a great addition to the area, and should go a long
ways to relieving traffic along Highway 16. Time will tell of course. |
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