Harvard Bridge | |
|---|---|
 Seen from Cambridge (2017) | |
| Coordinates | 42°21′16″N 71°05′29″W / 42.35457°N 71.09132°W |
| Carries |  Route 2A |
| Crosses | Charles River |
| Locale | Boston–Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States |
| Maintained by | MassDOT |
| ID number | B160124EYDOTNBI |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Haunched girder bridge |
| Material | Steel |
| Total length | 2,164.8 ft (387.72 sm; 659.82 m)[1] (roadway) 364.4 smoots ± one ear (620 m) (sidewalk from Storrow Drive to Cambridge only) |
| Width | 69.3 ft (12.42 sm; 21.13 m) (total width)[1] 52 ft (9.3 sm; 15.8 m) (roadway)[2] |
| No. of spans | 25[3] |
| Piers in water | 24[3] |
| Load limit | 86.4 short tons (78.4 t)[2] |
| Clearance below | 12 ft (2.2 sm; 3.7 m)[2] |
| History | |
| Constructed by | Boston Bridge Works[4] |
| Construction start | 1887 |
| Construction end | 1891 |
| Opened | September 1, 1891,[5] 1990 |
| Closed | 1983 (temporary closure for repairs) |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | 49,000 as of 2005[2] |
| Location | |
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The Harvard Bridge (also known locally as the MIT Bridge, the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge, and the "Mass. Ave." Bridge) is a steel haunched girder bridge carrying Massachusetts Avenue (Route 2A) over the Charles River and connecting Back Bay, Boston with Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is the longest bridge over the Charles River at 2,164.8 feet (387.72 sm; 659.82 m).[1]
After years of disagreement between the cities of Boston and Cambridge, the bridge was built jointly by the two cities between 1887 and 1891.[6] It was named for Harvard University founder John Harvard.[7] Originally equipped with a central swing span, it was revised several times over the years until its superstructure was completely replaced in the late 1980s due to unacceptable vibration and the collapse of a similar bridge in Connecticut.
The bridge is known locally for being marked off in the idiosyncratic unit of length called the smoot.[8][9]
- ^ a b c Harvard Bridge at Structurae
- ^ a b c d Department of Conservation and Recreation National Bridge Inventory (2012). "Place Name: Boston, Massachusetts; NBI Structure Number: 417208078401120; Facility Carried: Route 2A; Feature Intersected: Charles River". Nationalbridges.com (Alexander Svirsky). Archived from the original on December 5, 2018. Retrieved March 28, 2012.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
haer4was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Massachusetts Commissioner (1892). Harvard Bridge Boston to Cambridge. Rockwell and Churchill. p. 16 – via New York Public Library.
- ^ Alger & Matthews 1892, p. 15.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
haer3was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Alger & Matthews 1892, p. 14.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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mithistory49was invoked but never defined (see the help page).