The Pleasure Beach Bridge is a movable Warren through-truss bridge in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the List of cities in New England by population, fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Loc ...

. Completed in 1927, it functioned as a toll bridge until the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, when it was transferred to the city of Bridgeport. Its service life came to an end after it was badly damaged by fire in 1996, cutting off access to

Pleasure Beach Pleasure Beach is the Bridgeport, Connecticut, Bridgeport portion of a Connecticut barrier beach that extends westerly from Point No Point (the portion in the adjoining town of Stratford, Connecticut, Stratford is known as Long Beach). Prior t ...

. In the decade following the fire, several bonds to fund a new bridge were proposed, but ultimately fell through. Pleasure Beach has become the subject of debate, whether it will become an undisturbed protected salt marsh or be revitalized. An alternate method of access via water taxi service, first made possible by a grant in 2009, was not realized until 2013.

Construction

Pleasure Beach Bridge is a riveted Warren through-truss, consisting of longitudinal members joined only by angled cross-members, forming alternately inverted equilateral triangle-shaped spaces along the length. The bridge is supported by

timber pilings Timber pilings serve as the foundations of many historic structures such as Canning, canneries, Wharf, wharves, and shore buildings. The old pilings present challenging problems during restoration as they age and are destroyed by organisms and dec ...

. The swing span is made of two separate Warren through-trusses that pivots on concrete pier. The operator's house is located on the mainland approach. The bridge spans a length of , by wide, and was rated with an eight-ton limit. Its wooden construction resulted in the timbers creaking and shifting under the weight of passing cars.

History

Prior to the bridge's construction, Pleasure Island was accessible only by ferry. In 1907, the Pleasure Beach Ferry Company was given the rights to build a movable toll bridge. A series of trestles were built across the tidal flats with a swing span across the dredged channel. The swing span was constructed in 1927, but in the

the Beach Ferry Company transferred control of the bridge to the city of Bridgeport. The tolls were removed and the bridge continued to be used after Pleasure Beach's closing in 1968, until the 1996 fire. Repairs were made to the bridge in 1988 with money from the state. In 1994, the need to replace the bridge resulted in a state and federal promise of $20 million, but this was rejected by the

Connecticut Department of Transportation The Connecticut Department of Transportation (officially referred to as CTDOT, occasionally ConnDOT, and CDOT in rare instances) is responsible for the development and operation of highways, Rail transport, railroads, mass transit systems, por ...

in 1995. The bridge caught fire on June 16, 1996, when a cigarette butt or match ignited the wooden structure. The fire began around 2:20 p.m. and burned for over three hours. The bridge was raised to an open position; but the fire badly charred a section of the bridge. The bridge and Pleasure Beach was then closed. Estimates of the cost of constructing a new bridge or causeway varies between $9 million to $26 million.

Aftermath

The reconstruction of the bridge has been a perennial subject.

George Gunther George Lackman "Doc" Gunther (November 22, 1919 – August 26, 2012) was an American politician. He was the longest-serving state legislator in Connecticut history. Senator Gunther represented the 21st Connecticut Senate District, comprising all ...

, strong advocate for a new Pleasure Beach Bridge, petitioned for the eight consecutive years to replace the bridge. In 2005, the bridge was slated to have $13.5 million bond grant by the State of Connecticut that was termed " legislative pork". In 2007, a bond for $4 million to build a retractable pedestrian bridge was highlighted, but not constructed. The damage and closure of the bridge resulted in concerns over Pleasure Beach's fate. The

Connecticut Audubon Society The Connecticut Audubon Society, founded in 1898 and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to "conserving Connecticut’s environment through science-based education and advocacy focused on the state’s b ...

seeks to create Connecticut's largest, undisturbed protected salt match. The area has been designated an "

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

" and the purchase of surrounding land is underway. A local firm, Stantec, has been retained for a study for revitalizing Pleasure Beach; the accessibility to Pleasure Beach is a key issue. In 2009, the city of Bridgeport received a $1.9 million grant for a water taxi service that was delayed repeatedly into 2013.

References

{{coord, 41.1660, -73.1678, type:landmark_region:US-CT, display=title Bridges in Fairfield County, Connecticut Bridges completed in 1927 Former toll bridges in Connecticut Swing bridges in the United States Trestle bridges in the United States Wooden bridges in the United States Warren truss bridges in the United States Road bridges in Connecticut 1927 establishments in Connecticut 1996 disestablishments in Connecticut

Construction

History

Aftermath

See also

References