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Michigan Avenue Bridge
Description
This original bridge was built 1930. It was knocked down by ship that broke loose of its moorings in 1959, A new lift bridge was then built, and the center span bridgetender building was changed to the current site. The bridge was rehabilitated in the 1970s and again in 1996.Source: Robert J. Szary, Former Supervisor of Electrical & Mechanical Lift Bridge Maintenance, City of Buffalo Division of Engineering
Note: The National Bridge Inventory incorrectly lists the construction date as 1930. This probably is because the substructure of the 1930 bridge was reused.
Facts
- Overview
- Vertical lift bridge over Buffalo River on Michigan Avenue in Buffalo
- Location
- Buffalo, Erie County, New York
- Status
- Open to traffic
- History
- Built 1960, rehabilitated in 1970s and 1996
- Builders
- - Ernst Steel Corporation of Cheektowaga, New York (Contractor)
- McFarland-Johnson, Inc. of Binghamton, New York (Consulting Engineer)
- Design
- Vertical lift, Pratt through truss lift span.
- Dimensions
-
Length of largest span: 235.9 ft.
Total length: 245.7 ft.
Deck width: 37.7 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 14.0 ft.
- Recognition
- Eligible for the National Register of Historic Places
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +42.87139, -78.87278 (decimal degrees)
42°52'17" N, 78°52'22" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 17/673750/4748727 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Buffalo SE
- Average daily traffic (as of 2015)
- 2,923
- Inventory numbers
- NY 2260450 (New York State bridge identification number)
BH 26015 (Bridgehunter.com ID) - Inspection report (as of December 2018)
- Overall condition: Fair
Superstructure condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 63.7 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com
Update Log
- December 27, 2020: New photos from Josh Schmid
- November 13, 2020: New photo from Geoff Hubbs
- July 5, 2019: New photos from Mike Niethe
- August 7, 2016: New photos from Douglas Butler
- July 10, 2016: New photo from Royce and Bobette Haley
- April 26, 2016: New Street View added by Douglas Butler
- December 3, 2015: New Street View added by Douglas Butler
- August 2, 2015: Updated by Luke: Added builders + Images
- May 14, 2014: New Street View added by Luke Harden
- April 30, 2014: New photos from Douglas Butler
- September 14, 2010: Updated by Nathan Holth: Updated construction date and bridge history.
- June 17, 2010: New Street View added by Nathan Holth
Related Bridges
- Michigan Avenue Bascule Bridge (Predecessor)
Sources
- Nathan Holth
- Mike Niethe - michaelniethe [at] gmail [dot] com
- Douglas Butler
- Luke
- Royce and Bobette Haley - roycehaley111 [at] yahoo [dot] com
- Geoff Hubbs
- Josh Schmid
Comments
Michigan Avenue Bridge
From document review, it appears that the current Michigan Avenue Bridge was built in 1960 to replace a previous lift bridge built in 1933 (source: http://www.buffaloharborbridge.com/DocumentsandReports/BHB_P...). The replacement was due to collision by a drifting ship (the Michael K. Tewksbury) on the Buffalo River on January 21, 1959 (source: http://www.steamshipjbfordhistoricalsurvey.com).
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This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/ny/erie/2260450/
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/ny/erie/2260450/
The style of the bridge looks more like a 1960 bridge rather than a 1930 bridge, based on the excessive use of rolled beams and built-up beams having those "punched hole" designs commonly seen on truss bridges of the 1960s.