New River Gorge Bridge
New River Gorge Bridge | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 38°4.1′N 81°5.0′W / 38.0683°N 81.0833°W |
| Carries | US 19 |
| Crosses | New River, CR 82, CSX Transportation |
| Locale | Fayette County, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Maintained by | West Virginia Division of Highways |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Arch |
| Total length | 3,030 ft (924 m) |
| Width | 69.3 ft (21.1 m), 4 lanes with center divider |
| Height | 876 ft (267 m) |
| Longest span | 1,700 ft (518.2 m) |
| Clearance above | Deck arch, unlimited clearance |
| History | |
| Construction cost | $37 million (equivalent to $145 million in 2023 dollars) |
| Opened | October 22, 1977 |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | 16,200 vehicles/day |
New River Gorge Bridge | |
| NRHP reference No. | 13000603 |
| Added to NRHP | August 14, 2013 |
| Location | |
The New River Gorge Bridge is a steel arch bridge 3,030 feet (924 m) long over the New River Gorge near Fayetteville, West Virginia, in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States. With an arch 1,700 feet (518 m) long, the New River Gorge Bridge was the world's longest single-span arch bridge for 26 years; it is now the fifth longest and the longest outside of China. Part of U.S. Route 19, its construction marked the completion of Corridor L of the Appalachian Development Highway System. An average of 16,200 motor vehicles cross the bridge each day.
The roadway of the New River Gorge Bridge is 876 feet (267 m) above the New River, making the bridge one of the highest vehicular bridges in the world; it is the third highest in the United States. When completed in 1977, it was the world's highest bridge carrying a regular roadway, a title it held until the 2001 opening of the Liuguanghe Bridge in China. Because of its height, the bridge has attracted daredevils since its construction. It is now the centerpiece of the annual "Bridge Day", during which hundreds of people, with appropriate equipment, are permitted to climb on or jump from the bridge. In 2005, the structure gained additional attention when the U.S. Mint issued the West Virginia state quarter with the bridge depicted on one side. In 2013, the bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.