ORIGINAL Interstate Bridge Designs From Every State

thenetwork · November 28, 2019, 11:10:19 AM

Back in the days when building new interstates were at their peak, states usually used a standard design (columns, arches, guardrails, etc...) when building their bridges and yet looked different from other states' bridges.

In the 21st century, with bridge widenings, better designs, replacements due to age, and some municipalities wanting one-of-a-kind styled overpasses, many of these "standard issue" bridges are slowly disappearing from the interstate/freeway system.

What did your state's 1960's-1970's standard-issue bridge look like?

Here is from my birth state in Ohio:

https://goo.gl/maps/bGEZ516niCbvWxeR9

These were very Plain Jane, IMO. Over the decades, some of the columns were "wrapped" with a thicker concrete column.

The Ohio Turnpike bridges used squarer columns:

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.3034748,-81.7353762,3a,75y,170.32h,92.36t/data=!3m10!1e1!3m8!1s95DRSXiAUTJnQGHFHWUPiw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo3.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D95DRSXiAUTJnQGHFHWUPiw%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D3.5403216%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656!9m2!1b1!2i51

Where I live now in Colorado:

https://goo.gl/maps/QDVBNyY6zQEA53vcA

Subtle arches over the freeway, with columns that look like toothpicks holding up the bridge.

I know of some other states with real unique designs, but I'll let the forum fill in the remaining states/provinces.

MarkF · November 28, 2019, 08:10:50 PM

I was always interested in the differences in road design between the states. I had a section on this in my old website:
https://web.archive.org/web/20111104053055/http://members.cox.net/mkpl/bridge/otherbr.html

Around 1980-1990, it seems like most the states had gone to the "Jersey barrier" design.

sprjus4 · November 28, 2019, 08:22:55 PM

thenetwork · November 28, 2019, 09:20:11 PM

Some other memorable states of mine...

Michigan:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qNA5wDELk9FZ53Zg7

Iowa:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/4qhS68wEumFaZVwP7

North Carolina:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/36XFHBaKBZdBi5sa8

sprjus4 · November 28, 2019, 09:24:12 PM

Quote from: thenetwork on November 28, 2019, 09:20:11 PM
North Carolina:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/36XFHBaKBZdBi5sa8

That particular segment of I-77 didn't open until 1977.

Here's one from 1961 on I-40 outside Marion, one of those type of bridges that looks like it's going to collapse at any minute -
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.6443675,-81.9851262,3a,49.8y,227.14h,83.65t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sYDzhK2qi1SAse4tBRhzxig!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Beltway · November 28, 2019, 10:38:23 PM

Quote from: sprjus4 on November 28, 2019, 08:22:55 PM
For Virginia over the years, generally. Differs in some areas, for instance you may see some of the 1990s designs in 80s construction in areas, etc, but it gives you a general idea of how the designs have shifted over the years.
[...]
As for railings, the change over to the "jersey barrier" style was in the early 80s.

That design was almost universal from the late 1970s until very recently. The mid-1970s 22-mile I-495 widening utilized that.
https://www.google.com/maps/@38.7962979,-77.1351909,3a,15y,222.8h,81.64t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sVhyvDQ5uijYPQLtm7ftjXQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
The metal railing went away a few years later, but kept the New Jersey shape (that was actually a GM Barrier, had a thicker base slope).

Recent years they have gone back to a vertical barrier with a railing on top... and I am not sure why.
https://www.google.com/maps/@37.5291384,-77.3113889,3a,30y,235.48h,85.78t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sRplA3-fbz2ceHUgCArLw1g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
Probably a result of more crash testing research that didn't reveal any difference in safety, and cheaper to build.

noelbotevera · November 28, 2019, 11:16:26 PM

I'm sure Beltway has more knowledge on this, since it seems he's worked for PennDOT, but I'll give this a shot. Also note that I'll try to cover how PA's bridge designs have evolved, but it won't be perfect.

1940:
The PA Turnpike, being the first freeway in Pennsylvania, wrote its own book on building bridges. It seems the Turnpike would keep this style throughout its construction and expansion into the '50s. Copped this from exploringpahistory.com - has a postcard of the Turnpike that seems to be dated sometime around its opening.

1953:
While the Interstate system was being fleshed out, PA took the initiative to upgrade a few of its US Routes into freeways. Some Interstates were grandfathered into this primitive freeway system, such as I-83 around Harrisburg and I-78 in the area of Exits 13-17. This particular example comes from the Lehigh Valley Thruway, which was going to be I-78. Other bridges along US 22 have a different style, but seem to date from the early '50s. PADOH (Department of Highways, basically PennDOT before 1970) seems to have copied the Pennsylvania Turnpike's bridge design along this stretch, with few - if any - modifications.

1960:
As the Interstate system comes into being, PA's designs become less intricate. This style is common along I-81 all the way to Harrisburg, and I've seen many examples of this around the state.
Example

1977:
Nonetheless, PA's designs continue to improve, but have practically stagnated by this point. The I-81/US 322 interchange illustrates this point, having a very similar look to the early '60s bridges along I-81.
Example

1989:
Even in newer Interstate construction, PennDOT mostly sticks to familiar territory. Despite being a product of the late '80s, I-78's bridges in the Allentown area could pass for something in the '60s or '70s.
Example

2001:
Though you could say some improvements have been made within the last forty years. In the new millennium, incremental improvements seem to be made.
Example

sprjus4 · November 29, 2019, 12:06:35 AM

Quote from: Beltway on November 28, 2019, 10:38:23 PM
Recent years they have gone back to a vertical barrier with a railing on top... and I am not sure why.
https://www.google.com/maps/@37.5291384,-77.3113889,3a,30y,235.48h,85.78t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sRplA3-fbz2ceHUgCArLw1g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
Probably a result of more crash testing research that didn't reveal any difference in safety, and cheaper to build.

It varies it seems nowadays.

The I-64 Peninsula Widening Phase #2 project completed in April 2019 utilized the typical jersey barrier style without railing.

The recently completed I-564 Intermodal Connector project has typical jersey barrier style without railing on its I-564 flyover, the wetlands bridge, and Hampton Blvd overpass.

Not VDOT, but Chesapeake's Dominion Blvd expansion also features the typical jersey barrier style without railing on the Great Bridge Blvd, Bainbridge Blvd Relocated, Cedar Rd, and US-17 North to VA-168 South overpasses, but the Veterans Bridge piece of the project utilizes the barrier with rail.

Also Chesapeake, and not interstate or freeway, but they replaced this bridge in Deep Creek a few years back as apart of a 4-lane widening project, and it has the railing design.

VDOT's I-95 Meherrin River bridge replacement project completed late last year features the jersey barrier design without rail.

Beltway · November 29, 2019, 01:42:21 AM

Quote from: sprjus4 on November 29, 2019, 12:06:35 AM
Quote from: Beltway on November 28, 2019, 10:38:23 PM
Recent years they have gone back to a vertical barrier with a railing on top... and I am not sure why.
https://www.google.com/maps/@37.5291384,-77.3113889,3a,30y,235.48h,85.78t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sRplA3-fbz2ceHUgCArLw1g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
Probably a result of more crash testing research that didn't reveal any difference in safety, and cheaper to build.
It varies it seems nowadays.
The I-64 Peninsula Widening Phase #2 project completed in April 2019 utilized the typical jersey barrier style without railing.
The recently completed I-564 Intermodal Connector project has typical jersey barrier style without railing on its I-564 flyover, the wetlands bridge, and Hampton Blvd overpass.
Not VDOT, but Chesapeake's Dominion Blvd expansion also features the typical jersey barrier style without railing on the Great Bridge Blvd, Bainbridge Blvd Relocated, Cedar Rd, and US-17 North to VA-168 South overpasses, but the Veterans Bridge piece of the project utilizes the barrier with rail.
Also Chesapeake, and not interstate or freeway, but they replaced this bridge in Deep Creek a few years back as apart of a 4-lane widening project, and it has the railing design.
VDOT's I-95 Meherrin River bridge replacement project completed late last year features the jersey barrier design without rail.

The bridge in Deep Creek is an urban design with a sidewalk, and the vertical barrier with a metal rail is more common in that setting. Similar to the VA-147 Huguenot Bridge.

The others you listed appear to be the F-Shape Barrier, which has a smaller and lower flange than the New Jersey Barrier --
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-Shape_barrier

The F-shape barrier is a concrete crash barrier, originally designed to divide lanes of traffic on a highway. It is a modification of the widely used Jersey barrier design, and is generally considered safer.

The F-shape and the Jersey-shape have the same slopes, but the distance from the ground to the slope break point of the F-shape is 255 millimetres (10.0 in), which is 75 millimetres (3.0 in) lower than the Jersey-shape. This lower slope break point reduces vehicle lift, improving the barrier's performance.

thenetwork · November 29, 2019, 11:47:30 AM

As the OP, I wasnt even thinking of what was atop the bridges (guardrails, barriers, etc..). I was looking more at the support designs that were holding the bridges up.

Beltway · November 29, 2019, 03:52:47 PM

Quote from: thenetwork on November 29, 2019, 11:47:30 AM
As the OP, I wasnt even thinking of what was atop the bridges (guardrails, barriers, etc..). I was looking more at the support designs that were holding the bridges up.

That is called the substructure.

Some of us were commenting on parts of the superstructure.

Big John · November 29, 2019, 04:10:24 PM

^^ The deck is the riding surface mostly on top, the superstructure carry the weigth on many bridges and is below the deck, the substructure is mostly under the superstructure connecting it to the ground/steel pilings. Guardrails and barriers carry no strength of the bridge and the closest consideration a part of the deck.

SteveG1988 · November 29, 2019, 05:47:13 PM

Quote from: noelbotevera on November 28, 2019, 11:16:26 PM
I'm sure Beltway has more knowledge on this, since it seems he's worked for PennDOT, but I'll give this a shot. Also note that I'll try to cover how PA's bridge designs have evolved, but it won't be perfect.

1940:
The PA Turnpike, being the first freeway in Pennsylvania, wrote its own book on building bridges. It seems the Turnpike would keep this style throughout its construction and expansion into the '50s. Copped this from exploringpahistory.com - has a postcard of the Turnpike that seems to be dated sometime around its opening.

1953:
While the Interstate system was being fleshed out, PA took the initiative to upgrade a few of its US Routes into freeways. Some Interstates were grandfathered into this primitive freeway system, such as I-83 around Harrisburg and I-78 in the area of Exits 13-17. This particular example comes from the Lehigh Valley Thruway, which was going to be I-78. Other bridges along US 22 have a different style, but seem to date from the early '50s. PADOH (Department of Highways, basically PennDOT before 1970) seems to have copied the Pennsylvania Turnpike's bridge design along this stretch, with few - if any - modifications.

1960:
As the Interstate system comes into being, PA's designs become less intricate. This style is common along I-81 all the way to Harrisburg, and I've seen many examples of this around the state.
Example

1977:
Nonetheless, PA's designs continue to improve, but have practically stagnated by this point. The I-81/US 322 interchange illustrates this point, having a very similar look to the early '60s bridges along I-81.
Example

1989:
Even in newer Interstate construction, PennDOT mostly sticks to familiar territory. Despite being a product of the late '80s, I-78's bridges in the Allentown area could pass for something in the '60s or '70s.
Example

2001:
Though you could say some improvements have been made within the last forty years. In the new millennium, incremental improvements seem to be made.
Example

1940: the pa turnpike did use them. 1950s they started to phase it out, once they reached the outer extensions they just stopped building them, hence why they seem to stop near philly and ohio.

US 89 · December 03, 2019, 10:39:25 AM

Most of the oldest bridges I see on Utah interstates tend to look like this. These ones in particular are likely the oldest bridges on I-84:

cl94 · December 03, 2019, 05:43:50 PM

New York...really depends on who built the thing and where it was built. But I'll try and link some typical designs.

New York City and the surrounding metro have a few styles:
There's the stone-faced arch (here on the Cross Bronx): https://goo.gl/maps/4nVK5GLQBQTQo3oK9
This is standard on the BQE: https://goo.gl/maps/4LbLNf1n7PLsBSbv9
The Van Wyck: https://goo.gl/maps/Q8hm5yoKAWPr5zFs8

Moving north...
This was the typical Thruway design: https://goo.gl/maps/n7Uo5a8hfbiGxoRs8
...but the Thruway also had a handful like this: https://goo.gl/maps/AJJ4UvvYAt6n4ZpA9
An original bridge on I-684: https://goo.gl/maps/Fqfj9j6qX8e8jjJQ7
A lot of NYSDPW bridges Upstate looked like this: https://goo.gl/maps/yy6NkGCtNM3Frr6E7
Mid-60s version, complete with original railing: https://goo.gl/maps/XSF8P9kUVUCwaNUT6

plain · December 03, 2019, 10:56:50 PM

Quote from: sprjus4 on November 28, 2019, 08:22:55 PM
For Virginia over the years, generally. Differs in some areas, for instance you may see some of the 1990s designs in 80s construction in areas, etc, but it gives you a general idea of how the designs have shifted over the years.

1950s - 1960s -
https://www.google.com/maps/@36.6710876,-77.5559275,3a,75y,355.97h,81.35t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s-dVZ0fGGHEYBwMfERdLT6A!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
https://www.google.com/maps/@36.6010423,-78.1528423,3a,75y,38.93h,82.88t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sTBdUocEmN5kdhbku0WyRqg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Apparently there was a time in the mid to late 1950's that had a specific design on the bridges. Study the Dumbarton Rd overpass on I-95 just south of today's Exit 81 (US 1). This is obviously an original RPT bridge, one of several left today. While there were other bridges in the state with similar railings up to about 1964, the columns under the bridge were a different story...

The original Hampton approach to the HRBT (today's I-64) had bridges with the same railings and columns as those on the RPT. While all of the original railings there are gone now, you can still find original columns underneath the freeway in at least 2 places, on N. King St and on Rip Rap Rd. There's additional columns there from the 1988 widening, but you can easily tell the originals.

Quote
As for railings, the change over to the "jersey barrier" style was in the early 80s.

Both I-295 (the US 60, the SR 627 and the SR 640 overpasses) and the US 17/258 James River Bridge are good examples of when this change occurred.

Revive 755 · December 03, 2019, 11:27:55 PM

Couple of candidates for Illinois:
* On I-80
* On I-57

For Missouri, which has replaced or modified a lot of bridges since the interstates were built:

I-55 over US 61 between Jackson and Cape Girardeau
Example of an older urban structure over I-55 at Arsenal Street in St. Louis City
Example of older interchange bridges on SB I-55 at I-44 (if you rotate the image, note the added pier for the bridge carrying EB I-44).

Scott5114 · December 25, 2019, 02:52:31 PM

Your typical Oklahoma example.

tolbs17 · December 25, 2019, 08:16:44 PM

Quote from: Scott5114 on December 25, 2019, 02:52:31 PM
Your typical Oklahoma example.

That looks kind of funny and it looks a little scary too. There's like no metal or concrete at the bottom, so what type of design is that bridge? I've never in my life seen bridges like those (Well I did, but it's rare, I saw a few around the Balt-Wash Parkway like these)!

Like this.

By the way that bridge was not even that old. it was built in the 80's or 90's with a bad interchange design.

Tom958 · December 28, 2019, 01:15:12 PM

Georgia: three types of structure, three types of guardrail. Nine possible combinations of which seven were built and six survive.

This haunched T beam design with picket-style open concrete guardrail was common on the first sections of I-75, and there are still a few left between Tifton and Cordele. This one's on GA 316, though. Wait: here's one in south Georgia, one of quite a few that were raised massively. The picket-style guardrail also was used on a few plate girder bridges such as this one on I-75 near Ashburn, but never with precast beams.

This precast beam bridge with two-tube metal guardrail is also on I-75 in south Georgia. There's a surviving example of the plate girder version on I-20 near Conyers. Further west along I-20 are two surviving examples of the precast beam design, but with three-tube metal guardrail (if you look closely at the left end, you may be able to see that the guardrail on the end span is of a different type. I guess that the guardrail was damaged and they'd run out of replacement hardware!). There were plate girder bridges with the three-tube guardrail, too, but none of them survive.

And, out on what's now called GA 14 conn is a real unicorn: a haunched T beam bridge with three-tube guardrail. I think that this is the only one ever built, and AFAIK there was never a T beam bridge with two-tube guardrail.

Oh, I almost forgot: At the tail end of the early Interstate era came this one example of a plate girder bridge with early '50's-style bannister guardrail, on the I-85 Airport Connector in Atlanta. I have no idea why they chose this type of guardrail for exactly one location, but there it is.

In case anyone busts me... all three of these guardrail types were superseded in the early to mid '60's. First, a bulky new type of open concrete guardrail came into extremely wide use between 1961 and 1964 or so, then abruptly fell out of use, presumably because it incorporated a dangerous so-called safety walk. There was also a two-tube-metal design with a short concrete parapet used during the same period, almost exclusively in urban areas. There was also a three-tube metal rail that was used for municipal projects but only rarely by the state. the GA 166 project in Atlanta used single-tube rails that were apparently imported from Kentucky.

Starting in 1965, another type of really cool-looking metal guardrail appeared, in one, two and three-tube variants. Shortly after came a new concrete design which a bud of mine dubbed Florida Open Fence. These types prevailed until the introduction of the Jersey barrier in the late '70's. By this time, steel plate girder spans were ubiquitous- - no more concrete, precast or cast-in-place.

marleythedog · December 28, 2019, 10:11:21 PM

Quote from: thenetwork on November 28, 2019, 09:20:11 PM
Michigan:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qNA5wDELk9FZ53Zg7

I've always been intrigued by the insignia on Michigan's freeway bridge piers. It was pretty universal around the state (not sure about newer bridges, or the UP) and AFAIK unique. Does anyone know if there's history or significance to the mark?

Revive 755 · December 28, 2019, 10:26:24 PM

Illinois also used the haunched beam design once: Example on I-57.

Tom958 · December 29, 2019, 09:02:43 AM

Kentucky, which I've been inordinately fascinated with lately since traveling from Atlanta to Lexington to visit my daughter. This one, from 1960, is the oldest four-span example I can find, though I think that there must've been older ones that have been replaced. It sports a two-tube metal guardrail rather than the single-tube rail that predominates throughout the state, which... It seems that Kentucky sometimes incorporates a minor design variation throughout a given stretch of highway. For I-64 between Louisville and US 60 near Frankfort, the two-tube rail is it, though alternate bent designs are more common. That said, this one with extra spans over the wide median is on that same stretch of I-64, also built in 1960, and sports the single-tube rail.

I don't know when Kentucky stopped building this type of bridge, but this one on the Natcher Parkway is one of many built in 1972. This one has a different bent design, but the difference between it and the other such bridges found across the state is almost undetectably minor. Coming from Georgia, where it's easy to date most bridges by their appearance alone, I found the uniformity to be quite oppressive, especially considering how nondescript the replacement bridges are.

Having said that, I offer praise for Kentucky's curious decision to build different styles of bridges on some corridors during the Interstate era:

This box beam design for the Purchase Parkway, c. 1967

The same box beam but with a handsome open concrete guardrail on the Pennyrile Parkway, c. 1968

A few of these crazy things on I-24 in the early '70's, along with this plate girder design, which IMO is considerably enhanced by the fin-like horizontal stiffener plates. Now, if they could round up some paint.

Last, an off-topic shoutout for this one-off on I-64 near Winchester.

SteveG1988 · December 29, 2019, 09:46:07 AM

I don't have any really good examples, but...are we making a distinction between Turnpikes built pre interstate (NJTP,PENN) and the first interstates built as interstates? Or are we going "if it was a limited access road and carries a shield of an interstate"

formulanone · December 29, 2019, 10:30:16 AM

Florida was a little late to the party, as most Interstate construction did not start until the early-1960s, with most of it incomplete until the late-1980s. The subsequent population and traffic boom meant a lot of bridges have been revamped (re-ramped?) and/or totally rebuilt. I-75's oldest sections have few original bridges left, many of I-4 and I-95's are in the same situation.

My terminology is probably incorrect, too.

I think this design might be the oldest of all - there's not many of these steelies remaining on Interstates, Florida's Turnpike, or any other limited-access highways:
Turnpike at Midway Road (CR 712)

Concrete pillars and steel girders with vertical ribbing are most common on the oldest Interstate bridges. They seem to be a late-1960s to early-1970s design in Florida:
I-95 at CR 507 in Palm Bay

An example in Miami for I-95 and the FL 836 / I-395 interchange which opened around 1968:

r

The all-stressed concrete variety are the most common Florida's Interstates:
I-95 at Pioneer Trail in Port Orange

But it was used on some pre-Interstate structures, such as Florida's Turnpike (1956 - 1960s):
Turnpike at CR 523 and Turnpike at "Fla. S.R. 68" (now CR 68 at this point).

A bit off topic, but I always liked this decorative plaster-job of limestone coral rocks give it a unique design, though I don't know if it dates to the 1960s or not:
Exit 1 ramp to I-95 in Miami

News:

ORIGINAL Interstate Bridge Designs From Every State