Mile 106.1 - Huey P. Long Bridge
106.1 Huey P. Long Bridge
The Huey P. Long Bridge carries both autos and trains, and it is the second to last bridge on the entire Mississippi River system. Named after the infamous Louisiana governor Huey P. Long “Kingfish” whose populist rule lasted between 1928 and 1932. He served in the Senate until his assassination in 1935. His policies led directly to the development of Chemical Corridor in the century following.
The Huey P. Long Bridge in New Orleans is one scary tall narrow bridge. The high volume of traffic doesn't help things, nor do the tight turns and steep grades on the approach ramps. It is hard to grasp how big this metal monster really is. The deck is flat to accommodate rail traffic, whereas high bridges like this normally have a hump shape. As a result, the highway ramps go up-hill at a rather strong grade, while the railroad approaches are much more gradual, and extend miles to each side of the river crossing. The piers are equally massive, but much of that structure is below water. Given that New Orleans is built on silt, bedrock doesn't begin until you dig down over 1,000 feet below the riverbed. That makes it impractical to use bedrock for the base of the bridge pier foundations. Instead, the piers depend on their size and mass to stay in place. The Huey P. Long Bridge has been rated as ‘unacceptable’ and has been high on the priority list for replacement for many years. A project to rebuild the bridge in place was started in 2005. The plan was to first build the existing piers wider to support a wider bridge. Then the traffic decks was removed, and new truss structures was built parallel to the existing truss structure supported by the newly widened piers. These new trusses are now carrying 3 lanes of traffic. New approach roads were built to carry the wider highway to the new truss spans. The entire project was completed in 2013. Note that there are two bridges over the Mississippi River in Louisiana that are named after Huey P. Long, longtime governor of that state. The other Huey P. Long Bridge is a very similarly configured structure carrying US-190 over the river at Baton Rouge. (John Weeks)