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New River Gorge Bridge Choose another wonder
Location: Fayetteville, West Virginia, USA Completion Date: 1978 Cost: $37 million Length: 4,224 feet Type: Arch Purpose: Roadway Materials: Steel Longest Single Span: 1,700 feet Engineer(s): Michael Baker, West Virginia Department of Highways The New River carves a deep gorge through southern West Virginia. For years, in order to cross the New River Gorge, drivers were forced to take a 40-mile detour or carefully wind down narrow mountain roads. Despite its scenic beauty, the New River Gorge was a major obstacle. It wasn't until the completion of the New River Gorge Bridge in 1977 that this problem was solved.
The New River Gorge was an ideal location for a steel arch bridge. The solid rock on both sides of the gorge would resist the outward thrust of the arch, making tall towers and deep piers unnecessary. In June 1974, cables were strung between temporary towers located on each side of the gorge. The steel sections of the arch bridge were pieced together over the gorge by trolleys running on these cables. After three years of construction and $37 million, the new bridge reduced a 40-minute drive around one of America's oldest rivers to less than one minute. Today, the New River Gorge Bridge is the world's longest spanning, steel single-arch bridge. Soaring 876 feet above the rugged whitewaters of West Virginia's New River, it is also the second tallest bridge in the United States. Here's how this bridge stacks up against some of the longest-spanning bridges in the world. (total length, in feet)
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