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[Flint1979]

I'll have to agree with the Mackinac Bridge. I have been on the U.P. side when the bridge closed before and had to spend the night in St Ignace.

[Roadgeekteen]

Another one I thought about would be either of the two Cape Cod Canal bridges during the summer.

[1995hoo]

At least for the MD/DC/VA area, I would think that the Woodrow Wilson Bridge would be at or near the top of the list.  (For the non-locals, the I-95/495 bridge across the Potomac).

It was hideous here in 1998 the day the bridge was closed because some idiot was threatening to jump off. Backups of over 20 miles on the highway and gridlock on the surface streets after the authorities blocked the entrance ramps to prevent the highway from getting any worse.

[SectorZ]

If we can get non-fictional for a second, anyone living around Boston wouldn't expect that the Long Island Bridge from Quincy to Boston's Long Island would be the crapstorm it is, and it has nothing to do with traffic.

[Rothman]

At least for the MD/DC/VA area, I would think that the Woodrow Wilson Bridge would be at or near the top of the list.  (For the non-locals, the I-95/495 bridge across the Potomac).

It was hideous here in 1998 the day the bridge was closed because some idiot was threatening to jump off. Backups of over 20 miles on the highway and gridlock on the surface streets after the authorities blocked the entrance ramps to prevent the highway from getting any worse.

Hey, I was also in the area for that.  That was a day to remember.

[BridgesToIdealism]

At least for the MD/DC/VA area, I would think that the Woodrow Wilson Bridge would be at or near the top of the list.  (For the non-locals, the I-95/495 bridge across the Potomac).

It was hideous here in 1998 the day the bridge was closed because some idiot was threatening to jump off. Backups of over 20 miles on the highway and gridlock on the surface streets after the authorities blocked the entrance ramps to prevent the highway from getting any worse.

Hey, I was also in the area for that.  That was a day to remember.

Similar thing happened with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (US 50), I think last summer. Somebody I believe on three separate occasions climbed one of the suspension towers of the westbound bridge and refused to come down. On one occasion they held up the bridge for over 12 hours.

[bing101]

Any Bridge in New York City area would be in similar situation.

[MCRoads]

At least for the MD/DC/VA area, I would think that the Woodrow Wilson Bridge would be at or near the top of the list.  (For the non-locals, the I-95/495 bridge across the Potomac).

It was hideous here in 1998 the day the bridge was closed because some idiot was threatening to jump off. Backups of over 20 miles on the highway and gridlock on the surface streets after the authorities blocked the entrance ramps to prevent the highway from getting any worse.

Hey, I was also in the area for that.  That was a day to remember.

Similar thing happened with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (US 50), I think last summer. Somebody I believe on three separate occasions climbed one of the suspension towers of the westbound bridge and refused to come down. On one occasion they held up the bridge for over 12 hours.

Now that’s persistence!

But, I would think that that may not have caused as much chaos as some others on this thread, considering that the eastbound span can be used as a 2-way bridge quite easily. So at least you wouldn’t have to drive a super long way to avoid it, you would just have to deal with a delay.

[SkyPesos]

I’m trying to think of a scenario in either St Louis or Cincinnati, but completely closing the PSB or Brent Spence doesn’t seem as bad as the Memphis bridge, even though we experienced a complete Brent Spence closure a couple of months ago, as there’s 3 alternative interstate bridges in each metro area.

[Roadgeekteen]

At least for the MD/DC/VA area, I would think that the Woodrow Wilson Bridge would be at or near the top of the list.  (For the non-locals, the I-95/495 bridge across the Potomac).

It was hideous here in 1998 the day the bridge was closed because some idiot was threatening to jump off. Backups of over 20 miles on the highway and gridlock on the surface streets after the authorities blocked the entrance ramps to prevent the highway from getting any worse.

Hey, I was also in the area for that.  That was a day to remember.

Similar thing happened with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (US 50), I think last summer. Somebody I believe on three separate occasions climbed one of the suspension towers of the westbound bridge and refused to come down. On one occasion they held up the bridge for over 12 hours.

Now that’s persistence!

But, I would think that that may not have caused as much chaos as some others on this thread, considering that the eastbound span can be used as a 2-way bridge quite easily. So at least you wouldn’t have to drive a super long way to avoid it, you would just have to deal with a delay.

If both spans closed it would be a disaster.

[Flint1979]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

[MCRoads]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Is that based on experience?

[Roadgeekteen]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Why?

[1]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Why?

It's so lightly traveled that it would go unreported, and cars would be required to backtrack. You need to plan fuel trips and sometimes food trips accordingly, so drivers would get stuck backtracking, sometimes over 100 miles. While it doesn't affect a large number of drivers, it severely affects the ones who do go that way.

[Flint1979]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Why?

It's so lightly traveled that it would go unreported, and cars would be required to backtrack. You need to plan fuel trips and sometimes food trips accordingly, so drivers would get stuck backtracking, sometimes over 100 miles. While it doesn't affect a large number of drivers, it severely affects the ones who do go that way.

That would suck.

[MCRoads]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Why?

It's so lightly traveled that it would go unreported, and cars would be required to backtrack. You need to plan fuel trips and sometimes food trips accordingly, so drivers would get stuck backtracking, sometimes over 100 miles. While it doesn't affect a large number of drivers, it severely affects the ones who do go that way.

That would suck.

Has this happened before?

[Revive 755]

Probably any mainline bridge on I-80 between the I-294 interchange and IN 912, possibly eastward to I-65.

[roadman65]

Any bridge on US 1 south of Key Largo would trap anyone in the Keys south of whatever bridge.

[Roadgeekteen]

The closure of the Øresund Bridge would force travelers to get a Russian visa.

[GaryV]

The closure of the Øresund Bridge would force travelers to get a Russian visa.

There are ferries.

[Roadgeekteen]

The closure of the Øresund Bridge would force travelers to get a Russian visa.

There are ferries.

Is there a car ferry?

[Flint1979]

The one over the drainage ditch on US-50 in Nevada.

Why?

It's so lightly traveled that it would go unreported, and cars would be required to backtrack. You need to plan fuel trips and sometimes food trips accordingly, so drivers would get stuck backtracking, sometimes over 100 miles. While it doesn't affect a large number of drivers, it severely affects the ones who do go that way.

That would suck.

Has this happened before?

I doubt it I made the post to be sarcastic.

[D-Dey65]

Any of the Bay Area Bridges would be a disaster.

We had the Bay bridge closed for several weeks after the Loma Prieta earthquake. It wasn't fun, but, since the BART tube came through it OK, life wasn't impossible.

I remember worrying about BART during that quake, and I was amazed that it survived.  I suppose if the epicenter was in the San Francisco Bay, they wouldn't be so lucky.

[kkt]

Any of the Bay Area Bridges would be a disaster.

We had the Bay bridge closed for several weeks after the Loma Prieta earthquake. It wasn't fun, but, since the BART tube came through it OK, life wasn't impossible.

I remember worrying about BART during that quake, and I was amazed that it survived.  I suppose if the epicenter was in the San Francisco Bay, they wouldn't be so lucky.

The bedrock moves as a unit, so buried structures usually do okay as long as there's not liquefaction.  Above-ground structures get shaken just from the foundation so it creates more stress on the sides and top of the structure.

[jmacswimmer]

I just thought of the Delaware Memorial Bridge. It would cause a traffic nightmare in Philly, although it would be a bit better now that I-95 has been completed.

This actually has happened once - The DMB was closed for about 6 hours on the Sunday after Thanksgiving 2018 (aka one of the busiest travel days of the year) courtesy of a chemical leak from a plant adjacent to I-295 on the DE side.

From what I remember looking at Google Traffic during the closure, the Commodore Barry Bridge was at a standstill both directions and the NJTP began forcing SB traffic off as far back as exit 4.  (And FWIW, the complete I-95 would have been open 2 months at that point.)

Link to a WashPoint article about it: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/delaware-bridge-shut-down-for-hours-sunday-in-traffic-nightmare/2018/11/26/42dde1ce-f149-11e8-aeea-b85fd44449f5_story.html

If both spans [of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge] closed it would be a disaster.

Also happened, this one just a few weeks ago - a police chase that went over the Bay Bridge and ultimately ended on Kent Island shut down both spans for several hours on a Saturday morning.  Would have been much worse if it happened on, say, a Friday or Sunday afternoon in July, but still caused several miles of completely stopped traffic on either side.

Article link: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/transportation/backup-on-chesapeake-bay-bridge-after-closure/2665574/