-Fremont

FREMONT BRIDGE

 

BRIDGE FACTS

Type: Tied Arch, Orthotropic Upper Deck
At mile marker: 11.1
Overall length: 2,159'
Owner: State of Oregon

Easily identified by the flags it supports on its rainbow arch 381 feet above water level, the Fremont Bridge is also impressive because of its design and size. It is both the longest bridge in Oregon and the longest tied-arch bridge in the world.

Its design and construction processes were also remarkable. Oregon Dept. of Transportation, hoping to avoid the negative public reaction its Marquam Bridge received in 1966, invited the Portland Art Commission to give conceptual input. Various public and private firm engineers collaborated on its high tech, computer-aided design. Engineers from all over the world came to watch the completion of its assembly, a record-setting bridge lift: Over a 50-hour period 8 hydraulic jacks at each corner hoisted the 902 foot-long, 6,000-ton center span arch up into place 175 feet above the river.

The Fremont opened in 1973. Its concrete lower deck (for eastbound traffic) is suspended from the upper (westbound) deck, which is made of steel plate and designed with strengthening properties in two directions (“orthotropic”).

The bridge is named for the street which was to have been its eastside approach; the street is named for John Charles Fremont who was paid to survey the Oregon Trail.

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