Bronx Whitestone Bridge
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Aerial_View_of_the_Whitestone_Bridge.jpg
Bronx_Whitestone_Bridge.jpg
© 2004 Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Bronx_Whitestone_Bridge_2.jpg
© 2004 Metropolitan Transportation Authority
The Bronx Whitestone Bridge, colloquially referred to as the "Whitestone Bridge", is a suspension bridge that crosses the East River and connects the boroughs of Queens and The Bronx. The bridge was opened to traffic with four lanes on April 29, 1939. Its roadways were widened so as to carry six traffic lanes commencing in 1946. The nearby Throgs Neck Bridge was added in 1961 to relieve traffic.
Opened in 1939 to provide access to the 1940 New York World's Fair that was held in Flushing Meadows the following year, the Bronx Whitestone Bridge was the first direct physical link between Long Island and the mainland without going through another island. This suspension bridge connects Ferry Point Park in the Bronx with Whitestone in Queens and carries Interstate 678. Its span is 2300 feet (701 meters), and its total length is 3770 feet (1149 meters).
The bridge was designed similarly to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Tacoma, Washington, which collapsed during a windstorm in 1940. After that disaster the Bronx Whitestone Bridge was refitted with eight stayed cables on each tower. The bridge was closed for a very short time in November 1968 after a windstorm swayed the bridge more than 10 inches (25 centimeters) vertically.
From March 13, 2005, the crossing charge for a two-axle passenger vehicle is $4.50 charged in each direction, with a $.50 discount for E-ZPass users.
The Bronx Whitestone Bridge is owned by the City of New York and operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York).