Sunday, April 22, 2012

Ravenel Bridge: Sunday Bridges

The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, also known as the New Cooper River Bridge, is a cable-stayed bridge over the Cooper River in South Carolina, connecting downtown Charleston to Mount Pleasant. The eight lane bridge satisfied the capacity of U.S. Route 17 when it opened in 2005 to replace two obsolete cantilever truss bridges. The bridge has a main span of 1,546 feet (471 m), the third longest among cable-stayed bridges in the Western Hemisphere. It was built using the design-build method and was designed by Parsons Brinckerhoff. (Credit: Wikipedia)

Jim and I were fascinated by the design of bridges we saw in Georgia and South Carolina.  This one is a marvel of engineering.  We crossed it many times because we rented a condo in Mount Pleasant, just across the river from Charleston.  We always saw many people either jogging or walking across this bridge whenever we crossed it by our car.

To see more Sunday Bridges, click here.

20 comments:

  1. Knowing how much people in South Carolina and neighboring states like to criticize the federal government, I looked up the funding for this bridge.

    Yup. Federal grants and a federal loan. Do tea party members boycott the bridge and refuse to drive across it?

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  2. I think it's wonderful that these marvel-of engineering bridges also have bicyclist and pedestrian access.

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  3. Thanks, Kate, for posting a picture of our wonderful bridge! And on the same day that I posted one! What a great shot you got! Love it!

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  4. Beautiful bridge. It looks similar to the new bridge in my old hometown in Illinois.

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  5. There is something magnificent about these kinds of bridges. We have a similar one near Sarasota. That's a big one, too, with 8 lanes!

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  6. it's really pretty!

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  7. oh, the elegance of bridges.

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  8. Amazing design Kate, and I agree with Kathy, it's so good that cyclists and walkers can use it too.

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  9. This is such a marvel! I would never have guessed it had eight lanes of traffic!

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  10. Very elegant. This has a look that makes me think of ballerinas doing plies.

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  11. Great shot! I really like the blue tone and how it fit with the bridge.

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  12. Very minimalist.

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  13. Ah, these are such familiar places :^) Sorry you missed out on the full bloom, as many visitors did this year. Our spring was so warm and early! Blue Bicycle Books is a favorite of mine!

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  14. What a lovely bridge! I've not seen it before. Gorgeous shots! And I agree with VioletSkies: it has the look of a ballerina doing plies.

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  15. You LOVE the one in Boston then.

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  16. It is a beautiful bridge. It must be a long way to jog across, though!

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  17. This is the same style as out Anzac Bridge which I have featured many times.

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  18. That's a very unique bridge style. Very modern looking. - Margy

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  19. My parents live in Mt. Pleasant and whenever I'm there I take photos out of the car window when we go over the bridge. The old bridge was very narrow and kind of scary!

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