The Albany Street Bridge is a bridge that carries
Route 27 in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
spanning the
Raritan River
The Raritan River is a river of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its Drainage basin, watershed drains much of the mountainous areas in the North Jersey, northern and Central Jersey, central sections of the state, emptying into the Raritan Bay near ...
. The bridge connects
Highland Park on the east with
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
on the west. The bridge is so named because Route 27 in New Brunswick, from the Raritan River to Easton Avenue, is known locally as Albany Street.
History
The low stone
arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its structural load, loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either si ...
was built in 1887.
In 1915, the bridge became become part of the transcontinental
Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway is one of the first transcontinental highways in the United States and one of the first highways designed expressly for automobiles. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, and formally dedicated Octob ...
.
The bridge was widened in 1925.
In 1927, the bridge became part of route 27.
The bridge received modifications such as the chain link fencing in the 1980s. From the bridge's centennial in 1987 until 1991, a major renovation created a drastic traffic bottleneck in the area.
From the road, the appearance of the bridge is very modern. The best views of this historic arch bridge are from the banks of the Raritan River and from the nearby
Northeast Corridor
The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston in the north to Washington, D.C., in the south, with major stops in Providence, Rhod ...
Raritan River Bridge.
See also
*
List of crossings of the Raritan River
This is a list of road/highway and railroad, rail crossings of the Raritan River from the mouth at Raritan Bay upstream. It also includes crossings of its two branches: the North Branch Raritan River and the South Branch Raritan River.
Cros ...
*
Route of the Lincoln Highway
As the Lincoln Highway was one of the earliest transcontinental highways for automobiles across the United States and was widely publicized since its inception, the route of the Lincoln Highway was determined not only by civil engineering consid ...
External links
Historical photographs of the Albany Street Bridgea
Rutgers Cartography Lab
Bridges over the Raritan River
Bridges in Middlesex County, New Jersey
Bridges completed in 1887
Road bridges in New Jersey
Highland Park, New Jersey
New Brunswick, New Jersey
Stone arch bridges in the United States
1887 establishments in New Jersey
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