Essentially hurricane-proof, the 5 1/2-mile bridge touted as the largest public works project in the state's history will rise 30 feet above the lake with 80-foot high-rises, keeping it out of reach of storm surges. The structures will also be nearly twice as wide as the existing bridge, which will ease traffic, officials say.
The existing bridge was pretty well beat up by Katrina in August of 2005, rendering it useless for several months. Pieced together with what was left after the storm, the east bound lanes opened in October of '05. The westbound lanes reopened in January 2006, using prefabricated bridge sections of hot-dipped galvanized steel.
Here are recent pictures of the progress being made, taken on January 26, 2008.
(click on pictures for full-size versions)
You can see the progress being made from the southshore. The present spans are on the left
Taken from the North Shore (Slidell), you can see how far the construction has come
This shot shows the height of the new bridge at its lowest point compared to the present bridge.
Pilings to support the new bridge
Another shot from the North Shore. I've found Ed Blakely's cranes in the sky!
1 comment:
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