The Founders Bridge is one of the three highway bridges over the
Connecticut River in
Hartford, Connecticut. The steel
stringer bridge
Beam bridges are the simplest structural forms for bridge spans supported by an abutment or pier at each end. No moments are transferred throughout the support, hence their structural type is known as '' simply supported''.
The simplest beam ...
carries the
Route 2
The following highways are numbered 2. For roads numbered A2, see list of A2 roads. For roads numbered B2, see list of B2 roads. For roads numbered M2, see list of M2 roads. For roads numbered N2, see list of N2 roads.
International
* AH2, As ...
expressway, and also crosses over
Interstate 91
Interstate 91 (I-91) is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It provides the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of the region. The Interstate generally follows the course of the Connect ...
(which runs parallel to the river). the bridge had an average daily traffic of 29,200.
One of the centerpieces of Hartford's Riverfront Recapture project, it features a wide pedestrian promenade and access to the rest of the riverfront park area as well as to
Constitution Plaza.
The bridge makes up a section of the
East Coast Greenway, a system of trails connecting
Calais, Maine to
Key West, Florida.
History
In 1950, the
Bulkeley Bridge upstream was very congested with traffic, primarily because it was the only bridge that led to downtown Hartford, so it was planned to build a bridge just downstream, called the State Street Bridge. In 1955 they renamed this planned bridge as the Founders Bridge. In the same year, the
Greater Hartford Bridge Authority was created to help with this bridge's planning, along with the
Putnam Bridge and the
Bissell Bridge. The bridge opened on December 27, 1957, and was put under the designation of
CT 2. Tolls were removed about the time the bridge was connected to
I-91 and
I-84. In the late 1980s the bridge was considered for rebuilding to accompany a riverfront plaza being planned in the area. This led the state to rebuild the bridge in 1994 to add lanes, a large sidewalk, and path connections to
East Hartford
East Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 51,045 at the 2020 census. The town is located on the east bank of the Connecticut River, directly across from Hartford, Connecticut. It is home to aerospac ...
and Hartford. This rebuilding also eliminated the hazardous, congestion-prone connections to and from I-91 to the south, as these ramps had been made redundant by the toll-free
Charter Oak Bridge
The Charter Oak Bridge is one of the three highway bridges over the Connecticut River in Hartford, Connecticut. The twin steel stringer bridge carries the Wilbur Cross Highway ( Route 15/U.S. Route 5) over the river, connecting downtown Hartford w ...
replacement span. In 2001, a walkway was completed to link the path across Columbus Boulevard to
Constitution Plaza.
See also
*
List of crossings of the Connecticut River
References
External links
*
Transportation in Hartford, Connecticut
Buildings and structures in East Hartford, Connecticut
Bridges completed in 1958
Bridges over the Connecticut River
Buildings and structures in Hartford, Connecticut
Bridges in Hartford County, Connecticut
Road bridges in Connecticut
Steel bridges in the United States
Girder bridges in the United States
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