Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge | |
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(2005)
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Coordinates | 42°22′08″N 71°03′48″W / 42.36889°N 71.06333°WCoordinates: 42°22′08″N 71°03′48″W / 42.36889°N 71.06333°W |
Carries | 10 lanes of I‑93 / US 1 |
Crosses | Charles River, MBTA Orange Line |
Locale | Boston, Massachusetts |
Official name | Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge |
Owner | Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
Maintained by | Massachusetts Department of Transportation |
Characteristics | |
Design | Hybrid Steel and Concrete Cable-stayed bridge |
Total length | 1,432 ft (436 m) |
Width | 183 ft (56 m) |
Height | 270 ft (82 m) |
Longest span | 745 ft (227 m) |
Clearance below | 40 ft (12 m) |
History | |
Construction cost | $105 million |
Opened | March 30, 2003 (NB) December 20, 2003 (SB) |
The Leonard P. Zakim (/ˈzeɪkəm/) Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge (or Zakim Bridge) is a cable-stayed bridge across the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts. It is a replacement for the Charlestown High Bridge, an older truss bridge constructed in the 1950s. Of ten lanes, using the harp-style system of nearly-parallel cable layout, coupled with the use of "cradles" through each pylon for the cables, the main portion of the Zakim Bridge carries four lanes each way (northbound and southbound) of the Interstate 93 and U.S. Route 1 concurrency between the Thomas P. "Tip" O'Neill Jr. Tunnel and the elevated highway to the north. Two additional lanes are cantilevered outside the cables, which carry northbound traffic from the Sumner Tunnel and North End on-ramp. These lanes merge with the main highway north of the bridge. I-93 heads toward New Hampshire as the "Northern Expressway", and US 1 splits from the Interstate and travels northeast toward Massachusetts' North Shore communities, crossing the Mystic River via the Tobin Bridge.