The New Bedford/Fairhaven swing truss bridge

tattoodjay(83)

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The New Bedford/Fairhaven swing truss bridge

Good Morning, I hope your week is going well

Something about the bridge from source
The New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge is a swing truss bridge

The bridge is actually one of three bridges crossing the Acushnet River between the two communities. The entire four lane stretch carries U.S. Route 6 between the two communities. A short, 500-foot-long (150 m) span crosses between the mainland of New Bedford just west of McArthur Drive to Fish Island, the smaller western island in the river. From there, after a 0.1-mile (0.16 km) stretch of highway connects the two spans, the main New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge crosses from Fish Island to Pope's Island. This span includes the main span (see below). Once on Pope's Island, another 0.4-mile (0.64 km) stretch of highway connects to the third and longest span, a low, 0.2-mile (0.32 km) trestle bridge between Pope's Island and the town of Fairhaven, with the town line falling on the bridge. The entire stretch is just over 1 mile (1.6 km) between the two shores.

While many maps include all three spans as one "New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge", only the middle span between the two is the actual bridge. This span, which was built between 1897 and 1899, is the one which includes the 283.2-foot-long (86.3 m) swing truss across the main channel into the northern half of the harbor. The entire bridge, approaches included, is approximately 0.2 miles (0.32 km) long, with the swing span being mostly west of the center of the bridge. The bridge still opens on a regular basis, with daily openings to allow the fishing fleet in and out of the inner harbor

I know the bridge opening for boats to pass out and closing for vehicle traffic while it does is frustrating for many who regularly take that route, but personally I always enjoy watching it o[pen and close when I visit Popes Island

First Shot taken from Fleet Marina

new bedford fairhaven bridge.jpg

^{Sony A7iv 27mm F7.1 20 Sec ISO 100}
^{Click here to view larger}

And walking to the bridge,

new bedford fairhaven bridge-2.jpg

^{Sony A7iv 17mm F11 1.3 Sec ISO 100}
^{Click here to view larger}

and I shot I always try and get if I happen to be near the bridge as it opens or closes, a longer exposure catching the light trails as the barriers go up or down

new bedford fairhaven bridge-3.jpg