Indian River Inlet Bridge | |
|---|---|
 The bridge in 2020 | |
| Coordinates | 38°36′29″N 75°3′49″W / 38.60806°N 75.06361°W |
| Carries |
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| Crosses | Indian River Inlet |
| Locale | Sussex County, Delaware |
| Official name | Charles W. Cullen Bridge |
| Maintained by | Delaware Department of Transportation |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Cable-stayed bridge |
| Total length | 2,600 feet (790 m) |
| Width | 107.66 feet (32.81 m) |
| Longest span | 950 feet (290 m) |
| Clearance below | 45 feet (14 m) |
| History | |
| Opened | January 20, 2012 |
| Location | |
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The Indian River Inlet Bridge (officially the Charles W. Cullen Bridge) is a cable-stayed bridge located in Sussex County, Delaware, in the United States. It carries four lanes of Delaware Route 1 (DE 1) over the Indian River Inlet between the Indian River Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. The bridge also carries Delaware Bicycle Route 1 (Bike Route 1) across the inlet. The bridge is within Delaware Seashore State Park between Dewey Beach and Bethany Beach. The Indian River Inlet Bridge is maintained by the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT). The bridge is 2,600 feet (792 m) long and 107.66 feet (32.81 m) wide, with a span of 950 feet (290 m) and overhead clearance of 45 feet (14 m).
Prior to the current bridge, four other bridges have spanned the Indian River Inlet, opened in 1934, 1940, 1952, 1965, and 1976, the latter serving as a twin span to the 1965 one. All were known informally as the Indian River Inlet Bridge, and all but the first officially were named the Charles W. Cullen Bridge. The 1965 and 1976 bridges, of the steel girdertype, were subject to scouring from the inlet, leading to the need to replace them. Initial plans for a tied-arch bridge over the inlet in 2004 were over budget, and 2006 plans for a 1,400-foot (427-meter) cable-stayed bridge were cancelled because of early construction and legal problems. Construction of the current, 2,600-foot (792-meter) bridge began in 2008 as part of a design-build project, with Skanska awarded the contract to build the bridge. The current Indian River Inlet Bridge opened partially in January 2012 and completely in May 2012 at a cost of $150 million.