# Steel Bridge > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Steel_Bridge > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Steel_Bridge.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Bridge > Source revision: 1332682262 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Bridge in Portland, Oregon}} {{About||the bridge in Virginia|Dominion Boulevard Steel Bridge|the music festival|Steel Bridge Songfest}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox Bridge | name = Steel Bridge | image = SteelBridgePano1.jpg | carries = Upper: 2 outer lanes for general traffic, 2 inner lanes solely for [MAX Light Rail](/source/MAX_Light_Rail), and sidewalks on both sides
Lower: [Union Pacific Railroad](/source/Union_Pacific_Railroad) (incl. [Amtrak](/source/Amtrak) toward [Eugene](/source/Eugene%2C_Oregon)) and walkway | crosses = [Willamette River](/source/Willamette_River) | locale = [Portland, Oregon](/source/Portland%2C_Oregon) | owner = [Union Pacific Railroad](/source/Union_Pacific_Railroad) | maint = Union Pacific Railroad | design = Through [truss](/source/truss) with a double [vertical-lift span](/source/vertical-lift_bridge) | mainspan = {{convert|211|ft|m}} | width = {{convert|71|ft|m}} | below = {{convert|26|ft|m}} closed
{{convert|72|ft|m}} lower deck raised
{{convert|163|ft|m}} fully raised | open = 1912 (replaced 1888 bridge) | coordinates = {{coord|45|31|39|N|122|40|09|W|display=inline,title}} }} thumb|With lower deck telescoped into upper deck and lift span almost fully raised The '''Steel Bridge''' is a [through truss](/source/through_truss), double-deck [vertical-lift bridge](/source/vertical-lift_bridge) across the [Willamette River](/source/Willamette_River) in [Portland, Oregon](/source/Portland%2C_Oregon), [United States](/source/United_States), opened in 1912. Its lower deck carries railroad and bicycle/pedestrian traffic, while the upper deck carries road traffic (on the [Pacific Highway West No. 1W](/source/Pacific_Highway_West_No._1W), former [Oregon Route 99W](/source/Oregon_Route_99W)), and [light rail (MAX)](/source/MAX_Light_Rail), making the bridge one of the most multimodal in the world. It is the only double-deck bridge with independent lifts in the world{{cite web | url = http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/GEOENVIRONMENTAL/docs/Historic_Bridge/Willamette_Steel_Bridge.doc | title = Willamette River (Steel) Bridge | access-date = 2007-08-25 | year = 1999 | format = DOC | work = Portland Bridges | publisher = [Oregon Department of Transportation](/source/Oregon_Department_of_Transportation) }} and the second oldest [vertical-lift bridge](/source/vertical-lift_bridge) in North America, after the nearby [Hawthorne Bridge](/source/Hawthorne_Bridge). The bridge links the [Rose Quarter](/source/Rose_Quarter) and [Lloyd District](/source/Lloyd_District%2C_Portland%2C_Oregon) in the east to [Old Town Chinatown](/source/Old_Town_Chinatown%2C_Portland%2C_Oregon) neighborhood in the west. ==History== The bridge was completed in 1912 and replaced the previous Steel Bridge built in 1888 as a double-deck [swing-span bridge](/source/Swing_bridge). The 1888 structure was the first railroad bridge across the Willamette River in Portland. Its name originated because steel, instead of [wrought iron](/source/wrought_iron), was used in the original bridge's construction, which was very unusual for the time.{{cite book | last = Wood | first = Sharon | title = The Portland Bridge Book | edition = 2nd | publisher = [Oregon Historical Society](/source/Oregon_Historical_Society) | year = 2001 | isbn = 0-87595-211-9 }} When the current Steel Bridge opened, it was simply given its predecessor's name. The bridge was designed by the engineering firm of [Waddell & Harrington](/source/Waddell_%26_Harrington),Wood Wortman (2006), pp. 5, 39, 42, 180. which was based in [Kansas City, Missouri](/source/Kansas_City%2C_Missouri), but also had an office in Portland.{{cite book|author=Sheldrake, Arlen|title=Steel Over the Willamette|year=2012|publisher=Pacific Northwest Chapter, National Railway Historical Society |isbn=978-0-9851207-0-2|display-authors=etal}}{{rp|7, 52}} The structure was built by [Union Pacific Railroad](/source/Union_Pacific_Railroad) and the [Oregon-Washington Railroad and Navigation Company](/source/Oregon-Washington_Railroad_and_Navigation_Company) (OWR&N){{cite book | last= Bottenberg | first= Ray | title = Bridges of Portland | publisher = [Arcadia Publishing](/source/Arcadia_Publishing) | year = 2007 | pages = 36–37 | isbn= 978-0-7385-4876-0 }} at a cost of $1.7 million{{cite book | last1=Smith | first1=Dwight A. | last2=Norman | first2=James B. |author-link2=James B. Norman | last3=Dykman | first3=Pieter T. | title = Historic Highway Bridges of Oregon | publisher = Oregon Historical Society Press | year = 1989 | page = 208 | isbn = 0-87595-205-4 }} (equivalent to ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|1.7|1912|r=0}}}} million in {{Inflation-year|US}}{{Inflation-fn|US}}). It opened in July 1912 to rail traffic and on August 9, 1912, to automobiles. The 1888 Steel Bridge (upper deck) had been crossed by [horse-drawn streetcars](/source/horsecar) from the time of its opening and then by the city's first electric [streetcar](/source/streetcar) line starting in November 1889.{{rp|23–25}} When the present Steel Bridge opened in 1912, the streetcar lines (all electric by then) moved to it, starting on September 8, 1912."New Bridge Used: Streetcars Take New Route for First Time" (September 9, 1912). ''[The Morning Oregonian](/source/The_Oregonian)'', p. 10.{{rp|7}} Streetcar service across the Steel continued until August 1, 1948, when the last car lines using it, the Alberta and Broadway Lines, were abandoned. A single line of Portland's once-extensive [trolley bus](/source/trolleybus) system also used the bridge; the Williams Avenue line crossed the Steel Bridge from 1937 until October 9, 1949.{{rp|31}}{{cite book | last=Thompson | first=Richard M. | title=Portland's Streetcar Lines | year=2010 | publisher=[Arcadia Publishing](/source/Arcadia_Publishing) | pages=71, 90 | isbn=978-0-7385-8126-2 }} (Many years later, in 1986, electric transit vehicles returned to the bridge in the form of [MAX Light Rail](/source/MAX_Light_Rail) and later the [Portland Vintage Trolley](/source/Portland_Vintage_Trolley).) The lower deck of the bridge was threatened by major floods in [1948](/source/Vanport_City%2C_Oregon), [1964](/source/Christmas_flood_of_1964), and [1996](/source/Willamette_Valley_Flood_of_1996).{{rp|40}} The bridge was closed for three days because of the danger during the February 1996 floods.{{cite magazine |last=Sebree |first=G. Mac |author-link=Mac Sebree |date=April 1996 |title=Portland: Massive Flood Cuts MAX in Two |magazine=[Pacific RailNews](/source/Pacific_RailNews) |page=22 |publisher=Pentrex |issn=8750-8486 |url=http://magazine.trainlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/prn_199604.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190515113748/http://magazine.trainlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/prn_199604.pdf |archive-date=May 15, 2019 |access-date=2025-01-18 |url-status=dead}} In 1950, the Steel Bridge and its newly reconstructed approaches became part of a new [U.S. 99W](/source/U.S._Route_99W_(Oregon)) highway{{rp|37}} connecting [Harbor Drive](/source/Harbor_Drive) and Interstate Avenue. In the 1960s, the bridge was sought for use by [Interstate 5](/source/Interstate_5_in_Oregon), which was later moved to the [Marquam Bridge](/source/Marquam_Bridge). Construction of the freeway instead brought the addition to the Steel Bridge of a new viaduct leading onto I-84 from the bridge's eastbound lanes.{{cite news |last=Ostergren |first=Jack |date=June 25, 1968 |title=Unusual, Busy Steel Bridge Designed For Double Duty |page=10 |work=[The Oregon Journal](/source/The_Oregon_Journal)}} In 1972, the bridge became part of [Route 99W](/source/Oregon_Route_99W), replacing the US 99W designation. Harbor Drive, and by extension the ramps onto it from the bridge, was demolished from 1972 to 1974. It was replaced by [Tom McCall Waterfront Park](/source/Tom_McCall_Waterfront_Park). [[File:MAX train crossing Steel Bridge in 2009 - street view of SD660 LRVs.jpg|thumb|left|A westbound [MAX Blue Line](/source/MAX_Blue_Line) train crossing the bridge in 2009. Four of the five MAX lines cross the Steel Bridge. More than 600 MAX trips cross the bridge each weekday.]] In the mid-1980s, the bridge underwent a $10 million renovation, including construction of the MAX [light rail](/source/light_rail) line of [TriMet](/source/TriMet). Beginning in June 1984, the span was closed to all traffic for two years."Steel Bridge shut down for light rail" (June 12, 1984). ''The Oregonian'', p. B1. It reopened on May 31, 1986.Federman, Stan (May 30, 1986). "Bridge party trumpets reopening". ''The Oregonian'', p. E2. Completion and testing of the light-rail tracks and [overhead wires](/source/Overhead_lines) across the bridge took place during the next three months and the light rail line opened for service on September 5, 1986.{{rp|37–39}} The renovation also saw the crossing gates blocking the roadway and sidewalks during raising of the upper-deck lift replaced and automated. For the current bridge's first 72 years, the gates had been manually operated, rotated horizontally across the roadway by two "gate tenders", one on each side of the lift span.{{rp|8}} Small shacks for the gatekeepers were positioned on the roadway deck, between the inner and outer traffic lanes, but these were removed during the 1980s rebuilding and replaced by a new gate tender house positioned above the roadway, in the west lift tower.{{rp|8,21}} Powered crossing gates replaced the manual ones, and operation of the gates is now controlled remotely, by the bridge operator.{{rp|21}} A single-lane viaduct that connected the bridge's east approach to another viaduct (still in existence) that takes traffic from southbound Interstate 5 to [Interstate 84](/source/Interstate_84_in_Oregon) was closed in 1988 and was demolished in 1989, as part of roadway changes intended to improve traffic flow around the [Oregon Convention Center](/source/Oregon_Convention_Center).Federman, Stan (January 18, 1989). "Major road repairs this summer could snarl Portland-area traffic". ''The Oregonian'', p. B2. The center was under construction at that time and opened in 1990. In 2001,{{rp|9}} a {{convert|220|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} and {{convert|8|ft|m|adj=mid|-wide}} cantilevered walkway was installed on the southern side of the bridge's lower deck as part of the [Eastbank Esplanade](/source/Eastbank_Esplanade) construction, raising to three the number of publicly accessible walkways across the bridge, including the two narrow sidewalks on the upper deck. The bridge is owned by Union Pacific with the upper deck leased to [Oregon Department of Transportation](/source/Oregon_Department_of_Transportation), and subleased to [TriMet](/source/TriMet), while the City of Portland is responsible for the approaches.{{cite news | last = Redden | first = Jim | newspaper = [Portland Tribune](/source/Portland_Tribune) | publisher = Pamplin Media Group | title = Steel Bridge is less than solid | date = October 19, 2006 | url=http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=116130352598560300 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070929104559/http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=116130352598560300 | archive-date=September 29, 2007 | access-date = July 12, 2014 }} [[File:Amtrak talgo train crossing steel bridge.jpg|thumb|right|An [Amtrak](/source/Amtrak) [''Cascades''](/source/Amtrak_Cascades) train crossing the bridge]] thumb|c1890 photo of the original steel bridge photographed from the east end The average daily traffic in 2000 was 23,100 vehicles (including many TriMet buses), 200 MAX trains, 40 freight and [Amtrak](/source/Amtrak) trains, and 500 bicycles. The construction of the lower-deck walkway connected to the Eastbank Esplanade resulted in a sharp increase in bicycle traffic, with over 2,100 daily bicycle crossings in 2005.{{cite web| publisher = BikePortland.org| url = http://bikeportland.org/2005/09/20/bridge-bike-traffic-jumps-15-in-05/| title = Bridge bike traffic up in '05| access-date = 2006-04-09| archive-date = 2006-04-21| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060421015707/http://bikeportland.org/2005/09/20/bridge-bike-traffic-jumps-15-in-05/| url-status = dead}} MAX traffic has tripled since 2000, when only the Gresham–Hillsboro line (now the [Blue Line](/source/MAX_Blue_Line)) was using the bridge, to 605 daily crossings (weekdays) as of 2012.{{rp|38}} This resulted from the addition of three more MAX lines during that period: the [Red](/source/MAX_Red_Line), [Yellow](/source/MAX_Yellow_Line_(TriMet)), [Green Line](/source/MAX_Green_Line)s. In the summer of 2008, the upper deck was closed for three weeks to allow a junction to be built at the west end connecting the existing MAX tracks with a new MAX line on the [Portland Transit Mall](/source/Portland_Transit_Mall). A change made at that time was that the two inner lanes became restricted to MAX trains only, with cars, buses and other motorized traffic permitted only in the two outer lanes.{{cite news|last=Redden|first=Jim|title=Steel Bridge reopened with changes|url=http://portlandtribune.com/component/content/article?id=73269|access-date=July 16, 2019|newspaper=[Portland Tribune](/source/Portland_Tribune)|date=August 23, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181107103941/https://pamplinmedia.com/component/content/article?id=73269 |archive-date=November 7, 2018|url-status=dead}} In 2012, the Steel Bridge celebrated its 100th birthday. ''The Oregonian'' called it the "hardest-working" bridge on the Willamette River: "Cars, trucks, freight trains, buses, Amtrak, MAX, pedestrians, bicycles — you carry it all."{{cite news|last=Rose|first=Joseph|author-link=Joseph Rose (journalist)|title=Beaverton driving hotline can deliver a jolt to traffic scofflaws|date=July 6, 2012|newspaper=The Oregonian|url=http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2012/07/beaverton_driving_hotline_can.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708222728/http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2012/07/beaverton_driving_hotline_can.html |archive-date=July 8, 2012|url-status=dead|access-date=July 16, 2019}} {{Clear}} {{wide image|Portland oregon steel bridge panorama.jpg|800px|Steel Bridge panorama: at right is the [Moda Center](/source/Moda_Center). Also visible in the background are the [Fremont](/source/Fremont_Bridge_(Portland%2C_Oregon)) and [Broadway](/source/Broadway_Bridge_(Portland%2C_Oregon)) bridges.}} ==Structure and lift operation== thumb|View from roadway during a lift-span opening The lift span of the bridge is {{convert|211|ft|m|adj=off}} long. At low river levels, the lower deck is {{convert|26|ft|m}} above the water, and {{convert|163|ft|m}} of vertical clearance is provided when both decks are raised. Because of the independent lifts, the lower deck can be raised to {{convert|72|ft|m}}, telescoping into the upper deck but not disturbing it. Each deck has its own counterweights, two for the upper and eight for the lower, totaling {{convert|9|e6lb|ST MT|abbr=off}}. The machinery house sits atop the upper-deck lift truss. The operator's room is suspended from the top of the lift-span truss, directly below the machinery house, so that the operator can view river traffic as well as the upper deck. After the 2001 addition of a pedestrian walkway on the lower deck, cameras and [closed-circuit television](/source/closed-circuit_television) monitors were added to allow the operator to view the lower-deck walkway.{{rp|17}} == Incidents == === 2011 infrastructure spending protests === In November 2011, demonstrators lined the Steel Bridge to try to raise awareness about funding cuts for infrastructure maintenance in Portland and the overall state of the bridge. The bridge had been rated as being structurally deficient by an independent advocacy group, and the demonstrators had intended to use it as a symbol of decaying infrastructure in Oregon more broadly.{{cite web | last=Webber | first=Angela | title=Steel Bridge protest shines light on infrastructure crisis | website=Daily Journal of Commerce | date=2011-11-16 | url=https://djcoregon.com/news/2011/11/16/steel-bridge-protest-shines-light-on-infrastructure-crisis/ }} === 2014 tightrope walking incident === Early in the morning of August 2, 2014, a man was seen attempting to tightrope walk across the steel cables used to help raise and lower the bridge's lift span, which are roughly 270 feet high.{{cite web | last=House | first=Kelly | title=Steel Bridge tight rope walker arrested on disorderly conduct, trespassing charges | website=oregonlive | date=2014-08-02 | url=https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2014/08/steel_bridge_tight_rope_walker.html }}{{cite web | title=Man arrested for tight-rope walking on Steel Bridge, police say | website=KATU | date=2014-08-02 | url=https://katu.com/news/local/man-arrested-for-tight-rope-walking-on-steel-bridge-police-say }} Bystanders, who suspected that the man was either suicidal or under the influence of drugs, contacted local authorities and the bridge's operation was shut down.{{cite web | title=Cops: Man was tight-rope walking on bridge | website=azcentral.com and The Arizona Republic | date=2014-08-04 | url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/nation/2014/08/04/man-walks-wires-bridge/13587653/ }}{{cite web | title=Steel Bridge high-wire act lands man in jail | website=The Astorian | date=2014-08-04 | url=https://dailyastorian.com/2014/08/03/steel-bridge-high-wire-act-lands-man-in-jail/ }} The man appeared to take a photo of the sunrise before continuing to walk across the cables and then climbing down.{{cite web | title=Man Arrested on Birthday For High-Wire Act Atop Portland Bridge | website=NBC News | date=2014-08-02 | url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/man-arrested-birthday-high-wire-act-atop-portland-bridge-n171331 }}{{cite web | last=Press | first=Associated | title=Man arrested after walking wires of Oregon bridge | website=The Lewiston Tribune | date=2014-08-03 | url=https://www.lmtribune.com/northwest/man-arrested-after-walking-wires-of-oregon-bridge-fb6b78fd/ }} Police later identified the man as 21-year-old Benjamin Lovitz of Portland, who was charged with trespassing and disorderly conduct.{{cite web | last=Stanton. | first=Victoria | title=Summer Student Work: Nuclear pasta and other tales from senior physics majors' summer fellowships | website=News | date=2014-10-21 | url=https://www.bates.edu/news/2014/10/21/nuclear-pasta-and-other-tales-from-four-physics-majors-fellowship-experience/ }}{{cite web | last=Roth | first=Sara | title=Man arrested for Steel Bridge tight-rope walk | website=kgw.com | date=2014-08-05 | url=https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/man-arrested-for-steel-bridge-tight-rope-walk/283-318103012 }} === 2024 freight train derailment === In the morning of April 29, 2024, several cars from a Union Pacific train derailed near the east end of the bridge.{{cite web | last1=Rose | first1=Andy | last2=Yan | first2=Holly | title=A train derailment shuts down a historic bridge that carries cars and trains in Portland, Oregon | website=CNN | date=2024-04-29 | url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/29/us/train-derailment-steel-bridge-portland }} The bridge was shut down for several hours before reopening to traffic later that day.{{cite web | title=Steel Bridge reopens to vehicle traffic after freight train derailment | website=KVII | date=2024-04-29 | url=https://abc7amarillo.com/news/nation-world/train-derails-on-steel-bridge-bridge-closed }} ==See also== {{Portal|Transport|Engineering|Oregon}} *[List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Oregon](/source/List_of_bridges_documented_by_the_Historic_American_Engineering_Record_in_Oregon) *[List of crossings of the Willamette River](/source/List_of_crossings_of_the_Willamette_River) *[Steel Bridge Skatepark](/source/Steel_Bridge_Skatepark) ==References== ; General *{{Cite book |last1=Wood Wortman |first1=Sharon |date=2006 |title=The Portland Bridge Book |edition=3rd |location=Portland, OR |publisher=Urban Adventure Press |isbn=978-0-9787365-1-4}} *{{Cite book |last1=Sheldrake |first1=Arlen |display-authors=etal |date=2012 |title=Steel Over the Willamette |location=Portland, OR |publisher=Pacific Northwest Chapter, [National Railway Historical Society](/source/National_Railway_Historical_Society) |isbn=978-0-9851207-0-2}} ; Specific {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{Commons category}} *[http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/GEOENVIRONMENTAL/historic_bridges_Portland.shtml#Steel_Bridge ODOT Steel Bridge page]{{Dead link|date=December 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }} *{{Structurae|id=20005471|title=Steel Bridge}} *{{HAER |survey=OR-21 |id=or0291 |title=Steel Bridge, Spanning Willamette River at State Route 99, Portland, Multnomah County, OR |photos=22 |color=3 |dwgs=3 |data=49 |cap=5}} {{Bridges of Portland, Oregon}} {{Crossings navbox |structure = Crossings |place = [Willamette River](/source/Willamette_River) |bridge = Steel Bridge |bridge signs = |upstream = [Burnside Bridge](/source/Burnside_Bridge) |upstream signs = |downstream = [Broadway Bridge](/source/Broadway_Bridge_(Portland%2C_Oregon)) |downstream signs = }} {{Kerns, Portland, Oregon}} {{Lloyd District, Portland, Oregon}} {{Old Town Chinatown, Portland, Oregon}} {{Authority control}} Category:1912 establishments in Oregon Category:Bridges completed in 1888 Category:Bridges completed in 1912 Category:Bridges in Portland, Oregon Category:Bridges over the Willamette River Category:Historic American Engineering Record in Oregon Category:Kerns, Portland, Oregon Category:Light rail bridges Category:Lloyd District, Portland, Oregon Category:MAX Light Rail Category:North Portland, Oregon Category:Northeast Portland, Oregon Category:Northwest Portland, Oregon Category:Old Town Chinatown Category:Railroad bridges in Oregon Category:Road-rail bridges in the United States Category:Road bridges in Oregon Category:Southern Pacific Railroad Category:Steel bridges in the United States Category:Swing bridges in Oregon Category:Truss bridges in the United States Category:Union Pacific Railroad bridges Category:U.S. Route 99 Category:Vertical lift bridges in Oregon --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Steel Bridge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Bridge) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_Bridge?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.