Piscataqua River Bridge

Piscataqua River Bridge
The Piscataqua River Bridge seen from the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge in Kittery, Maine
Coordinates	43°05′34″N 70°45′58″W / 43.092788°N 70.766158°W / 43.092788; -70.766158Coordinates: 43°05′34″N 70°45′58″W / 43.092788°N 70.766158°W / 43.092788; -70.766158
Carries	I‑95
Crosses	Piscataqua River
Locale	Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Kittery, Maine
Official name	Piscataqua River Bridge
Maintained by	New Hampshire Department of Transportation
ID number	021702580012800
Characteristics
Design	Steel through arch bridge
Total length	1372.5 m (4,503 ft)
Width	29.9 m (98 ft)
Clearance above	7.1 m (23.3 ft)
Clearance below	41.1 m (134.8 ft)
History
Opened	1972
Statistics
Daily traffic	60700 (1990)

The Piscataqua River Bridge is a through arch bridge that crosses the Piscataqua River, connecting Portsmouth, New Hampshire with Kittery, Maine. Carrying six lanes of Interstate 95, the bridge is the third modern span and first fixed crossing of the Piscataqua between Portsmouth and Kittery. The two other spans, the Memorial Bridge and the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge, are both lift bridges, built to accommodate ship traffic along the Piscataqua. The high arch design of the Piscataqua River Bridge eliminates the need for a movable roadway.

As part of the Interstate Highway System, Interstate 95 was routed along the New Hampshire Turnpike, which had opened to traffic in 1950, and paralleled U.S. Route 1 through New Hampshire's seacoast from the Massachusetts border to the Turnpike's end at the Portsmouth Traffic Circle. Between the traffic circle and the beginning of the Maine Turnpike, there was a gap in I-95 that was filled by the US-1 Bypass, crossing over the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge. Since the Long Bridge is a lift bridge with only a two lane roadway, it was far from meeting Interstate Highway standards.

The decision was made to extend I-95 north from the New Hampshire Turnpike at Portsmouth and south from the Maine Turnpike in Kittery, and join the roads with an uninterrupted high speed span over the Piscataqua. Work on the bridge was completed in 1971, and the I-95 extension to it in Maine was completed the following year.