Manayunk Bridge
| Manayunk Bridge | |
|---|---|
Manayunk Bridge in 1999
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| Coordinates | 40°01′31″N 75°13′35″W / 40.02528°N 75.22639°WCoordinates: 40°01′31″N 75°13′35″W / 40.02528°N 75.22639°W |
| Carries | Former SEPTA Ivy Ridge Line |
| Crosses | Schuylkill River and Schuylkill Expressway |
| Locale | Manayunk, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Other name(s) | Manayunk Viaduct |
| Maintained by | SEPTA |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Open spandrel deck arch |
| Material | Concrete |
| Longest span | 150 feet (46 m) |
| No. of spans | 15 |
| Piers in water | 3 |
| History | |
| Designer | Pennsylvania Railroad |
| Constructed by | T. L. Eyre (Philadelphia) |
| Construction end | 1918 |
| Closed | 1986 |
The Manayunk Bridge (a.k.a. Manayunk Viaduct) is a historic bridge in Pennsylvania across the Schuylkill River and adjacent Schuylkill Canal between Bala Cynwyd in Montgomery County and the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia. It is now used as an extension of the Cynwyd Heritage Trail to connect to the Schuylkill River Trail after a rail-to-trail conversion.
Built by the former Schuylkill Valley Division of the Pennsylvania Railroad, it is a large concrete open spandrel arch bridge built on a reverse curve, earning both the current bridge and its 1883 wrought-iron-truss predecessor the nickname of "S-Bridge." The bridge's challenging geometry was executed by T. L. Eyre, a Philadelphia contractor. Another notable feature is the saw-toothed construction joints along a 65-degree skew.
In 1976, SEPTA purchased the bridge for its Ivy Ridge Line (now Cynwyd Line). Ten years later, after weather-related expansion and contraction of the bridge, and the shedding of pieces of concrete due to spalling, SEPTA closed the bridge on October 25, 1986, truncating service at Cynwyd and suspended service to three of the line's six stations (Ivy Ridge, Manayunk, and Walnut Hill). Between 1996 and 1999, the bridge was stabilized and refurbished. The effort determined that the internal steel reinforcement was not compromised, as SEPTA had feared. Further investigation by Urban Engineers determined that the bridge was safe and only needed surface work to stop the spalling.
SEPTA has not resumed service to Ivy Ridge; in 1996 low ridership led SEPTA to consider discontinuing service to Cynwyd altogether.
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