Bridge-restaurant

A bridge restaurant or restaurant bridge is a restaurant, usually indoors, built like a bridge over a road, mostly over freeways or motorways. It usually provides access from both sides of the road without the need of crossing the road by tunnel or footbridge. The construction also attracts the attention of motorists, making it easy to find the rest area.

The first bridge restaurant was built in 1957, over I-44 (Will Rogers Turnpike) at the Vinita, Oklahoma, rest area. It is the world's largest McDonald's fast food restaurant. With the construction of the Illinois Tollway in 1958, five more bridge restaurants were built as Illinois Tollway Oases, opening in 1959. Further implementation of the concept in the United States has been hampered by US Code 23 clause 111, which prohibits commercial activities at the rest areas along the Interstate Highways. Although commercial activities existing before 1960 could continue, and the unaffected turnpikes already had commercialized rest areas, no new restaurants were added. Despite this legislation the Lincoln Oasis bridge restaurant has been opened in 1967.

The concept was introduced to Europe in 1959 by the Italian architect Angelo Bianchetti, who built the first European bridge restaurant in slightly more than six months. In 1962, Pavesi replaced its existing roadside restaurants at Novara and Bergamo along the Autostrada Serenissima by bridge restaurants at Novara and Osio. This was done in conjunction with the upgrade of the three lane highway to motorway standards. Bianchetti built nine bridge restaurants for his principal, the Italian food chain Pavesi. Three Pavesi bridges, Chianti, Dorno and Serrevalle-Pistoiese, were built by other architects. The concept was replicated by Pavesi's competitor Motta, who built two bridges at the Cantagallo and Limena rest areas, and later on spread over Europe. In 1974 the Italian chains were heavily effected by the oil crisis and as a result no more bridge restaurants were built in Italy. In 2012 there are 13 bridge restaurants left in Italy.

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Wikipedia