The Brownsville High Level Bridge, also known as the Lane-Bane Bridge, carries U.S. Route 40 over the Monongahela River in Brownsville, Pennsylvania.
History
Planning for the bridge began in 1954 in an effort to reduce congestion in downtown Brownsville. 1 In January 1955, a bill was introduced in the Pennsylvania State Senate calling for a four-lane high-level bridge. The measure received House approval on May 15, 1956, and Governor George M. Leader signed it into law on June 2, 1956.
Ground was broken for the new bridge on September 7, 1958, in a ceremony held near the Union Station freight house. 1 3 It included introductions made by Charles H. Snyder, president of the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce, an invocation by the Rev. William Howard Ryall of the Presbyterian Church, and a short speech by Senator Sen. William J. Lane. 3 On September 29, H.C. Back and Sons of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, began work on piers No. 2 through 7 and completed that portion of the project at a cost of $297,901 2 on February 19, 1960. 1
On December 9, 1959, the State Senate voted 49–0 to name the bridge after the two legislators who had originally sponsored the project, Sen. Eustace H. Bane of Fayette County and Sen. William J. Lane. 1 The naming measure was approved by the House on December 19.
In 1960, contracts for the bridge approaches were awarded to Goldberg & Sons of Uniontown and the Nello L. Teer Construction Company of North Carolina. 1 Work also began on the superstructure under a $3.3 million contract awarded to the Pittsburgh-Des Moines Steel Corporation. 1 2 The final girders at midstream were installed on November 15, 1961, and the concrete deck was placed by Graziano Construction Company of Pittsburgh. 1
The Brownsville High Level Bridge was dedicated and opened to traffic on November 28, 1962. 1 The project cost $10 million, included four miles of rebuilt approaches, and was expected to carry 14,000 vehicles daily. Notably, no fatalities occurred during construction.
Gallery
Details
- State: Pennsylvania
- Route: U.S. Route 40
- Status: Active (Automobile)
- Type: Warren Deck Truss
- Total Length: 2,132'
- Main Span Length: 518'
- Deck Width: 60'
- Height of Structure: 160'
Sources
- “Bridge Fete on Wednesday.” The Evening Standard, 26 Nov. 1962, pp. 1-3.
- “Work is Moving Ahead Steadily On Big New Brownsville Bridge.” The Evening Standard, 22 May 1961, pp. 25.
- “Ground-Breaking At New B’ville Bridge.” The Evening Standard, 6 Sept. 1958, pp. 1-5.
- “Huge Span to be Built Over River.” The Evening Standard, 6 Sept. 1958, pp. 1-5.