Topic: Highest overpasses (Read 99874 times)

Some_Person · « **on:** February 08, 2013, 11:05:08 PM »

Most separate-grade overpasses are in the 15-20' range above the road/highway. However, due to higher land or a hill nearby, some highways have overpasses that are very tall, here's an interesting example I have: http://goo.gl/maps/ifFE6 (I-476 over US-6/11). I don't know the exact height but it looks like it could be at least 100 feet. Anyone else have cool examples to share?

JREwing78 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 08, 2013, 11:55:06 PM »

This one over the Ohio Turnpike is a definite candidate: http://goo.gl/maps/MEDj7

Bruce · « **Reply #2 on:** February 09, 2013, 12:33:34 AM »

Another arch bridge, over SR 7 in Tacoma. http://goo.gl/maps/Dg7UB

Alex · « **Reply #3 on:** February 09, 2013, 01:34:52 AM »

Two that come to mind are the Kingwood Pike bridge over I-68 at Morgantown:

and the Lilac Road bridge over I-15 in San Diego County:

Road Hog · « **Reply #4 on:** February 09, 2013, 04:59:36 AM »

Do ramps count?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pfrench99/4078573037/#/photos/pfrench99/4078573037/lightbox/

vdeane · « **Reply #5 on:** February 09, 2013, 12:37:13 PM »

Here's one over I-890: http://goo.gl/maps/2CdJv

roadman65 · « **Reply #6 on:** February 09, 2013, 01:38:53 PM »

The NJ Turnpike has a high one near Englewood, NJ between NJ 4 and Broad Avenue. It is that arch bridge you see before you enter the GWB tangle heading north on I-95.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Fort+Lee,+NJ&hl=en&ll=40.868335,-73.976871&spn=0.00413,0.010568&sll=27.698638,-83.804601&sspn=9.892242,21.643066&oq=fort+lee&t=h&hnear=Fort+Lee,+Bergen,+New+Jersey&z=17&layer=c&cbll=40.868335,-73.976871&panoid=WjzVS7VHj9VSkgnJwTNLRw&cbp=12,146.84,,0,-22.5

D-Dey65 · « **Reply #7 on:** February 09, 2013, 10:55:45 PM »

Many of your additions beat mine, but this is Heatherdell Road over the Sprain Brook Parkway:
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=41.031944,-73.833056&ll=41.017146,-73.825035&spn=0.013486,0.01929&t=h&z=16&layer=c&cbll=41.017062,-73.825113&panoid=JRqap36IsSC5l0FrVO4QtQ&cbp=12,37.14,,0,0

NYSDOT Region #8 told me personally in a letter that the clearance was 43 feet and 6 inches.

Although Ugly Bridges takes a few inches away from the DOT:
http://uglybridges.com/1392740

amroad17 · « **Reply #8 on:** February 09, 2013, 11:53:18 PM »

Quote from: Some_Person on February 08, 2013, 11:05:08 PM

Most separate-grade overpasses are in the 15-20' range above the road/highway. However, due to higher land or a hill nearby, some highways have overpasses that are very tall, here's an interesting example I have: http://goo.gl/maps/ifFE6 (I-476 over US-6/11). I don't know the exact height but it looks like it could be at least 100 feet. Anyone else have cool examples to share?

That one always impressed me ever since I was 10 years old.

A couple off the top of my head...

The overpass just west of exit 15 on I-64 in Huntington, WV. (West Pea Ridge Rd.)
I-26/US 23 over Big Laurel Road just north of exit 3 in NC. (Might be 150-200 ft. high)

CentralCAroadgeek · « **Reply #9 on:** February 10, 2013, 12:01:28 AM »

Never saw it in person, but the Mulholland overpass over I-405 looks pretty high, though it's gonna be replaced soon.

There's also the arched railroad overpass over the Arroyo Seco Pkwy.

lepidopteran · « **Reply #10 on:** February 10, 2013, 12:11:39 AM »

The Pittsburgh area seems to have lots of these. There are at least two locations where the Mon-Fayette Expressway south of Pittsburgh runs quite high over other roads and a river. Then there's the Greenfield Bridge over Parkway East, though that's slated to be demolished soon (with a larger structure to replace it?)

And on I-279, there are two really high railroad overpasses on the way to the Fort Pitt Tunnel. I think there's also one over I-77 near Princeton, WV.

When they were under construction, I found the ramps for the Pocahontas Parkway (VA-895) near Richmond, VA to be jaw-dropping tall.

Revive 755 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 10, 2013, 12:18:52 AM »

There's two somewhat high ones on the Missouri side of the St. Louis area, but lower than some of the other examples.

1) Big Bend Road over I-270
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=st.+louis,+mo&hl=en&ll=38.567764,-90.440172&spn=0.007088,0.016512&sll=39.739318,-89.266507&sspn=14.263541,33.815918&hnear=St+Louis,+Missouri&t=m&z=17&layer=c&cbll=38.567851,-90.44018&panoid=XzE94wYXV3NmF1WcXxRr9A&cbp=12,165.96,,0,8.54

2) Route M in Jefferson County over Old Lemay Ferry Road
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=st.+louis,+mo&hl=en&ll=38.35914,-90.468324&spn=0.003571,0.008256&sll=39.739318,-89.266507&sspn=14.263541,33.815918&hnear=St+Louis,+Missouri&t=m&z=18&layer=c&cbll=38.359055,-90.468405&panoid=J1nvefpyC-lnUBhOW2IMYQ&cbp=12,36.2,,0,12.63

This one over I-74 in East Peoria may be the highest one in Illinois, unless the US 20 facility west of Rockford is ever built with something higher - or there's one elsewhere I'm forgetting.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Peoria,+il&hl=en&ll=40.67006,-89.574001&spn=0.013752,0.033023&sll=38.359056,-90.468405&sspn=0.003571,0.008256&hnear=Peoria,+Illinois&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=40.669729,-89.573403&panoid=sav9pP35Bm-Y02rkmEXtxg&cbp=12,141.58,,0,2.51

lepidopteran · « **Reply #12 on:** February 10, 2013, 12:52:45 AM »

One puzzling example is the northern/eastern end of the Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike (I-78). If you ever got on this highway after entering NJ through the Holland Tunnel, you may have noticed that the northbound lanes coming the opposite direction are high up in the air. This is apparent even if you don't realize that the road you're on is also elevated (probably due to a railroad that curves under it, twice), and consequently the northbound lanes are that much higher off the ground! Never did understand why the northbound road was that much taller, since the added height seems to serve no practical purpose. I think I heard that it was to allow for another highway in the interchange that was cancelled or planned.

Edit: View of the northbound (higher) roadway from the southbound (lower) roadway.
http://goo.gl/maps/Ej3fW

SteveG1988 · « **Reply #13 on:** February 10, 2013, 09:50:34 AM »

Quote from: lepidopteran on February 10, 2013, 12:52:45 AM

One puzzling example is the northern/eastern end of the Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike (I-78). If you ever got on this highway after entering NJ through the Holland Tunnel, you may have noticed that the northbound lanes coming the opposite direction are high up in the air. This is apparent even if you don't realize that the road you're on is also elevated (probably due to a railroad that curves under it, twice), and consequently the northbound lanes are that much higher off the ground! Never did understand why the northbound road was that much taller, since the added height seems to serve no practical purpose. I think I heard that it was to allow for another highway in the interchange that was cancelled or planned.

It looks like in birds eye view, that it was made to meet up with NJ 139, perhaps it was easier to keep the road high and have it make a curve in the air than to go around it due to space constraints.

Some_Person · « **Reply #14 on:** February 10, 2013, 06:34:20 PM »

PA 43 is really high above this road: http://goo.gl/maps/2BaiY as well as this one: http://goo.gl/maps/JvqZp

There's also the well known VA 895 example that I believe was mentioned earlier: http://goo.gl/maps/V2wKZ

I-78 is pretty high above this road in East PA: http://goo.gl/maps/s29ZC

The Verrazano-Narrows bridge is pretty high above the Belt Pkwy, a pretty amazing view of the bridge: http://goo.gl/maps/w38eK

Jim · « **Reply #15 on:** February 10, 2013, 08:09:54 PM »

Quote from: deanej on February 09, 2013, 12:37:13 PM

Here's one over I-890: http://goo.gl/maps/2CdJv

Unfortunately, this overpass carries Hulett Street rather than Highbridge Road, which crosses over I-890 via a much lower overpass a few miles to the east.

Molandfreak · « **Reply #16 on:** February 10, 2013, 08:25:07 PM »

Quote from: Alex on February 09, 2013, 01:34:52 AM

and the Lilac Road bridge over I-15 in San Diego County:

That's the one I thought of when I first saw this thread! I didn't know the name of it, but it really intrigued me when I was down there! I took the parallel Rainbow Canyon Road once, but it didn't intrigue me as much as that bridge (though it was nice to get out of four-lane traffic)

Sanctimoniously · « **Reply #17 on:** February 10, 2013, 09:11:08 PM »

http://tinyurl.com/b82dmpa

I thought this one was a little bit taller than it actually seems to be. Shades Crest Road over I-459 near Bessemer.

Revive 755 · « **Reply #18 on:** February 10, 2013, 10:21:17 PM »

Fairly high one over I-24 in Chattanooga:
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Chattanooga,+TN&hl=en&ll=35.021119,-85.262339&spn=0.00746,0.016512&sll=39.739318,-89.266507&sspn=14.263541,33.815918&oq=chat&hnear=Chattanooga,+Hamilton,+Tennessee&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=35.021119,-85.262339&panoid=iIkGkXWhu4OmRQGiNO-1gQ&cbp=12,87.31,,0,-7.6

empirestate · « **Reply #19 on:** February 11, 2013, 09:31:09 AM »

The first one that came to my mind was this: http://goo.gl/maps/Brcpy –although it now seems like a pretty weak submission. I remember it striking me as much higher, though I believe it does look higher in real life than Street View suggests.

Quote from: Some_Person on February 10, 2013, 06:34:20 PM

PA 43 is really high above this road: http://goo.gl/maps/2BaiY as well as this one: http://goo.gl/maps/JvqZp

From the term "overpass", I also was mentally discounting certain other categories, such as structures more elaborate than simple girder-and-concrete-bent spans, or those cases where the crossing is part of a larger viaduct or bridge system. That makes the PA 43 examples interesting, since they are simple span types, but are they mere overpasses? They're designed to cross a valley that happens to contain a road; if the road weren't there, they'd be needed anyway. What about cases where the overpass exists only to cross a road, and would not have been built had the road not existed?

The I-15/Lilac Road example seems to be one of those; that doesn't look like a natural valley that I-15 is in.

agentsteel53 · « **Reply #20 on:** February 11, 2013, 09:42:06 AM »

the highest signed one I've ever seen is 26'3. I believe it is on State Street in Fontana, CA.

cpzilliacus · « **Reply #21 on:** February 11, 2013, 10:33:35 PM »

North end of I-476 (Pennsylvania Turnpike's Northeast Extension over U.S. 6/U.S. 11) is pretty high (GSV here). And I just noticed that this is what the OP mentioned.

Though that Turnpike bridge is a runt when compared to this structure (also GSV), located a few miles to the north on U.S. 11 (though it does not carry highway traffic). More details here (Wikipedia).

And then there's le Viaduc de Millau (Wikipedia), which carries the A75 autoroute over the valley of the Tarn River in France. Official Web site (in English) here. GSV from below the viaduct here. GSV from the deck of the viaduct here.

empirestate · « **Reply #22 on:** February 11, 2013, 10:42:52 PM »

Quote from: cpzilliacus on February 11, 2013, 10:33:35 PM

And then there's le Viaduc de Millau, which carries the A75 autoroute over the valley of the Tarn River in France. Official Web site (in English) here. GSV from below the viaduct here.

I appreciate that it has transparent guide rails.

cpzilliacus · « **Reply #23 on:** February 11, 2013, 10:47:05 PM »

Quote from: empirestate on February 11, 2013, 10:42:52 PM

I appreciate that it has transparent guide rails.

Yep. Went back and added a hyperlink to a view from the deck of the viaduct.

Thank you for pointing that out.

cpzilliacus · « **Reply #24 on:** February 11, 2013, 10:56:05 PM »

Don't think this is the highest of the bunch, but it gets an honorable mention - appropriately-named Ridge Road over I-70 (GSV) in Braddock Heights, Frederick County, Maryland.

And there's a pretty tall structure that carries I-68 over Md. 144 ("old" U.S. 40, also GSV) east of Cumberland in Allegany County, Maryland.

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Author Topic: Highest overpasses (Read 99874 times)