Sarah Mildred Long Bridge facts for kids

The Sarah Mildred Long Bridge is a special kind of bridge called a lift bridge. It crosses the Piscataqua River and connects Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with Kittery, Maine. This bridge carries traffic from U.S. Route 1 Bypass. The first bridge with this name was used from 1940 until 2016. A brand new bridge opened in March 2018.

Quick facts for kids Sarah Mildred Long Bridge
Seen from the New Hampshire side
Carries	US 1 Byp.
Crosses	Piscataqua River
Locale	Portsmouth, NH, and Kittery, ME
Official name	Sarah Mildred Long Bridge
Owner	NHDOT & MaineDOT
Maintained by	Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority
Characteristics
Design	Concrete lift bridge
Total length	2,800 feet (850 m)
Longest span	300 feet (91 m)
History
Designer	Hardesty & Hanover
Engineering design by	Figg Engineering
Constructed by	Cianbro Corp.
Opened	March 30, 2018

The Bridge's Story

The first Sarah Mildred Long Bridge was the third bridge built for cars between Maine and New Hampshire in Portsmouth. It replaced an older river crossing from 1822. This bridge was built because the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority, created in 1937, wanted to reduce traffic jams. Before this bridge, all traffic went through downtown Portsmouth and Kittery on the Memorial Bridge. The Sarah Mildred Long Bridge was finished in 1940.

The First Sarah Mildred Long Bridge

Original bridge
The original Sarah Mildred Long Bridge, as seen from Kittery, ME
Coordinates	43°05′09″N 70°45′39″W / 43.0859°N 70.76091°W / 43.0859; -70.76091
Carries	US 1 Byp.
Crosses	Piscataqua River
Locale	Portsmouth, NH, and Kittery, ME
Official name	Sarah Mildred Long Bridge
Maintained by	Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority
ID number	021702510010800
Characteristics
Design	Steel truss lift bridge
Total length	854.7 m (2,804 ft)
Width	9.1 m (29.9 ft)
Clearance above	5.09 m (16.7 ft)
Clearance below	41 m (134.5 ft) (Lift span open)
History
Opened	November 8, 1940
Closed	August 24, 2016
Statistics
Daily traffic	14,000 (2014) 14,900 (1990)

The original Sarah Mildred Long Bridge was a truss bridge with two levels. The top level was for cars, and the bottom level was for trains. When it first opened in 1940, it was simply called the Maine-New Hampshire Bridge. In 1987, it was renamed to honor Sarah Mildred Long. She worked for the Maine-New Hampshire Interstate Bridge Authority for 50 years, starting as a secretary and eventually becoming the executive director.

This bridge had two parts that could move. The main part for cars would lift up for large ships. There was also a special retractable bridge for trains near the Kittery side. This train part would lift up and slide back on its own tracks. The train part was usually left open for small boats to pass under, so it wouldn't stop car traffic too often.

From 1960 to 1972, the U.S. Route 1 Bypass used this bridge to connect parts of Interstate 95. Even though most of the bypass had four lanes, the bridge only had three. The middle lane's direction would change depending on how much traffic was going each way. This, plus being a drawbridge, meant it wasn't as good as modern interstate highways. Later, the "high level" Piscataqua River Bridge opened in the 1970s, which connected I-95 directly. In its last years, the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge only had two lanes for cars.

On April 1, 2013, a large tanker ship hit the bridge. This caused serious damage and closed the bridge to cars for a while. At that time, the original Memorial Bridge was also closed for repairs, so the Piscataqua River Bridge was the only one open between Kittery and Portsmouth. The Sarah Mildred Long Bridge was fixed and reopened to cars on May 13, 2013.

On August 21, 2016, the bridge got stuck in the closed position because of a mechanical problem. Officials managed to lift the main part a little bit on August 22, so ships could still pass under. Ships have priority by law. However, it was too risky to keep lifting the bridge regularly. Officials from NHDOT and MaineDOT decided that repairs would cost too much and take too long. So, the bridge was officially closed for good on August 24, 2016.

The main part of the bridge was removed on October 14, 2016. The towers of the bridge were taken down by April 2017.

The Railroad Tracks

The train tracks on the bridge were part of the Boston & Maine Railroad. These tracks connected to South Berwick, Maine. The bridge also took over traffic from an old railroad trestle (a type of bridge) that had fallen down on September 10, 1939. That trestle was damaged when a large caisson (a watertight box used for building underwater) for the new bridge dragged its anchor cables. This pulled out parts of the trestle, sending a train engine and a baggage car into the river, where they still are.

The tracks led to Kittery Junction. From there, one path went towards York, Maine, but that part was stopped in 1925. The other path went to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery. This part of the track is mainly used to transport special materials for the shipyard.

The New Bridge Today

Building the new bridge cost $158.5 million and started in January 2015. It was planned to open in September 2017. The old bridge was supposed to close in November 2016, but its mechanical problem in August 2016 made it close earlier.

The new bridge was designed by Hardesty & Hanover and Figg Engineering. It was built by Cianbro Corp. Instead of steel, this new bridge is made of cantilevered, post-tensioned concrete. This design needed fewer support piers than the old bridge and is better at handling if a ship bumps into it.

When the new bridge is closed, it has a vertical clearance of 56 feet (17 m). This is about 35 feet (11 m) higher than the old bridge. This means it needs to open much less often (about 68% fewer times) for boats to pass. The bridge also has wider shoulders, which are great for bicycle lanes.

The U.S. Department of Transportation gave $25 million for the railroad part of the project. This shows how important the train tracks are for supporting the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. The new bridge has one 300-foot (91 m) lift section that works for both cars and trains. It lowers to the train track level when a train needs to cross.

The new bridge was supposed to open on September 1, 2017, but there were some delays. It officially opened on March 30, 2018.

In March 2019, this bridge project was named New Hampshire's best engineering achievement of the past year by the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC). It was also one of 16 projects chosen for ACEC's national award.

Gallery

Original bridge

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  Seen from the Memorial Bridge, Piscataqua River Bridge behind

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  Movable rail bed

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  Nuclear fuel transport train leaving Kittery

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  Seen from Portsmouth

Present bridge

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  Seen from the Maine side

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  Incomplete rail bed as of April 2018

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  Bridge and ramps, from the New Hampshire side