The
Hood Canal Bridge is a
floating bridgeA pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
located in the
U.S.The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
state of Washington that carries Washington State Route 104 across
Hood CanalHood Canal is a fjord forming the western lobe, and one of the four main basins, of Puget Sound in the state of Washington. Hood Canal is not a canal in the sense of being a man-made waterway—it is a natural waterway.-Geography:...
and connects the
OlympicThe Olympic Peninsula is the large arm of land in western Washington state of the USA, that lies across Puget Sound from Seattle. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the north by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the east by Puget Sound. Cape Alava, the westernmost point in the contiguous...
and
KitsapThe Kitsap Peninsula is an arm of land that is part of the larger Olympic Peninsula in Washington state that lies west of Seattle across Puget Sound. Hood Canal separates Kitsap Peninsula from the rest of the Olympic Peninsula...
Peninsulas. At 7869 feet (2,398.5 m) long, (floating portion 6521 feet (1,987.6 m) it is the longest floating bridge in the world located in a saltwater tidal basin, and the third longest floating bridge overall. First opened in 1961, it was the second concrete floating bridge constructed in Washington. Since that time, it has become a vital link for local residents, freight haulers, commuters, and recreational travelers. The convenience it provides has had a major impact on economic development, especially in eastern
Jefferson CountyJefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington, named after Thomas Jefferson. As of 2010, the population was 29,872. The county seat is at Port Townsend, which is also the county's only incorporated city....
.
The bridge is officially named after the director of the Department of Highways,
William A. BuggeWilliam Adair Bugge was a civil engineer who played a major role in the development of the transportation infrastructure of the West Coast of the United States during the latter half of the 20th century.-Background:...
(1900–1992), from 1949 to 1963 who was a leader in the planning and construction of the bridge. The bridge, however, has continued to be popularly known as the Hood Canal Bridge.
Design, fabrication, and construction
The design and planning process for the Hood Canal Bridge took nearly a decade amid criticism from some engineers throughout that time. Critics questioned the use of floating
pontoonA pontoon is a flotation device with buoyancy sufficient to float itself as well as a heavy load. A pontoon boat is a flattish boat that relies on pontoons to float. Pontoons may be used on boats, rafts, barges, docks, floatplanes or seaplanes. Pontoons may support a platform, creating a raft. A...
s over salt water, especially at a location where tide fluctuations vary as much as eighteen feet and the funneling effect of the Hood Canal might magnify the intensity of winds and tides. The depth of the water, however, made construction of support columns for other bridge types prohibitively expensive.
The pontoons for the bridge were fabricated in the
Duwamish WaterwayThe Duwamish River is the name of the lower of Washington state's Green River. Its industrialized estuary is known as the Duwamish Waterway.- History :...
in
Seattle, WashingtonSeattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
. During fabrication two of the pontoons sank.
When they were attached for the first time, and then towed into place and anchored, sea conditions in the Hood Canal were too severe and the pontoons were returned to a nearby bay until a better method of attaching could be devised. The architects and the contractor decided the design was faulty. A new contractor was hired and the design modified. It was decided to use a large rubber dam between each of the two pontoons as they were attached, clean the concrete surfaces of all marine growth,
epoxyEpoxy, also known as polyepoxide, is a thermosetting polymer formed from reaction of an epoxide "resin" with polyamine "hardener". Epoxy has a wide range of applications, including fiber-reinforced plastic materials and general purpose adhesives....
, and tension them with a number of cables welded to a variety of attachment points. This system seemed to work from when the bridge opened in 1961 until the disaster of 1979.
1979 sinking
The Hood Canal Bridge suffered
catastrophic failureA catastrophic failure is a sudden and total failure of some system from which recovery is impossible. Catastrophic failures often lead to cascading systems failure....
during the
February 13, 1979 WindstormThe February 13, 1979 windstorm is a natural phenomenon that took place on February 13, 1979 in Pacific Canada and the United States. During the early morning of February 13, 1979, an intense wave cyclone moved across southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia. South of the low center, a strong...
. During the night the bridge had withstood sustained winds of up to 85 mph (137 km/h) and gusts estimated at 120 mph (193 km/h), and finally succumbed at about 7:00 a.m., February 13. The western drawspan and the pontoons of the western half had broken loose and sunk, despite the drawspan being opened to relieve lateral pressure.
At the time of the failure, the bridge had been closed to highway traffic and the tower crew had evacuated; no casualties resulted. Evidence points to blown-open hatches allowing flooding of the pontoons as the cause of the sinking.
West-half reconstruction and 1982 re-opening
Efforts to repair the bridge began immediately and Washington Secretary of Transportation William A. Bulley secured a commitment of federal emergency relief money for the project. On June 15, 1979 actual work began with the removal of the west truss and transport for storage. The Washington State Department of Transportation attempted to mitigate the impact of the disaster by redirecting traffic to US Highway 101 to drive around the 50 mile (80 km)
Hood CanalHood Canal is a fjord forming the western lobe, and one of the four main basins, of Puget Sound in the state of Washington. Hood Canal is not a canal in the sense of being a man-made waterway—it is a natural waterway.-Geography:...
and by re-establishing the
Washington State ferryWashington State Ferries is a passenger and automobile ferry service owned and operated by the Washington State Department of Transportation that serves communities on Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands. It is the most used ferry system in the world and the largest passenger and automobile...
run between Lofall and South Point across the canal just south of the bridge. This route had been discontinued after the 1961 bridge opening and the state needed to re-acquire access to and restore operational conditions on both landings. During the course of the closure an additional ferry route was temporarily added between
EdmondsEdmonds is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. Edmonds has a view of Puget Sound and both the Olympic Mountains and Cascade Range. The third most populous city in Snohomish County after Everett and Marysville, the population was 39,709 according to the 2010 census...
and
Port TownsendPort Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...
.
The Hood Canal Bridge re-opened to vehicular traffic on October 25, 1982. The west-half replacement had been designed and constructed in less than three years using $100 million in federal emergency bridge replacement funds at a total cost of $143 million.
The bridge re-opened as a
toll bridgeA toll bridge is a bridge over which traffic may pass upon payment of a toll, or fee.- History :The practice of collecting tolls on bridges probably harks back to the days of ferry crossings where people paid a fee to be ferried across stretches of water. As boats became impractical to carry large...
, but tolls were lifted in 1985 after a court ruling that the insurance settlement constituted repayment of the construction bonds, and since federal funds were used in re-constructing the bridge, the Washington State Department of Transportation could not charge tolls after the bonds were retired.
East-half replacement
In a project that lasted from 2003 to 2009, WSDOT replaced the east-half floating portion of the bridge, the east and west approach spans, the east and west transition spans, and the west-half electrical system. The total cost of the project, about $471 million, is being paid by state, federal and agency funds. The project required the bridge to close to traffic for five weeks to allow the old pontoons of the east-half to be cut away and the new pontoons floated into position, cabled together and connected by cables to large anchors on the sea floor. The transition spans and center draw span were also replaced during this closure. The bridge reopened June 3, 2009.
The pontoons and anchors for the bridge could not be built at the bridge site due to space and facility limitations. WSDOT evaluated different sites at which to build during a site selection process. The Port Angeles graving dock was chosen for its accessibility to water and land as well as the work force. Before purchase, the National Historic Preservation Act required archaeologists to perform a review of the historical site. At that time, “there was no evidence of historic properties or cultural resources” (NEPA Re-evaluation Consultation, FHWA) and WSDOT was able to purchase the site and begin construction.
Within the first two weeks of construction, artifacts were found from an ancestral burial ground from an ancient village called
Tse-whit-zenTse-whit-zen is a 1,700 to 2,700 year old Lower Elwha Klallam village on the Port Angeles, Washington waterfront, located at the base of Ediz Hook. A project for a graving dock discovered in 2004 that it had been sited to include the village's cemetery...
. WSDOT stopped all work on the site, and a government-to-government consultation process began among the
Lower Elwha Klallam TribeThe Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe is a federally recognized and sovereign Native American nation. The tribe is part of the larger Klallam culture, part of the Coast Salish peoples of the Pacific Northwest. The traditional territory of the Klallam is the north and northeast portion of the Olympic...
, WSDOT, the Federal Highway Administration, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the State Historical Preservation Office. On August 14, 2006, WSDOT agreed to donate the site to the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe, rebury all remains uncovered, and pay $2.5 million in damages.
It is believed that this discovery may be documentation of the first time that Natives and non-Natives began to interact on this shore. These historical findings will be investigated thoroughly by the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and archaeologists.
On December 21, 2004, Governor Locke and Secretary MacDonald announced that WSDOT would stop pontoon and anchor construction at the Tse-whit-zen site in Port Angeles and begin searching for a more suitable place to build. Many sites were considered but the best option to be found by WSDOT was in Tacoma, Wash. at Concrete Technology.
Construction began on the new east-half floating pontoons at Concrete Technology in April 2006. Fourteen pontoons will be built in four cycles at the site. Completed pontoons will be floated out of the graving dock in Tacoma and transported to Seattle for outfitting at Todd Shipyards. Outfitting includes adding all electrical and mechanical parts, connecting the pontoons into sections and building the roadway on top of the pontoons. Another three pontoons, built during the west-half bridge replacement in the early 1980s, will be retrofitted in Seattle.
Usage
In planning for a prolonged closure of the bridge for the east-half replacement, the Washington State Department of Transportation conducted a five-day survey of bridge usage in early June 1998 in order to assess closure impact and plan effective mitigation strategies. The survey was in three stages: A video camera count of traffic on weekdays (Tuesday and Wednesday) and a weekend (Friday through Sunday) to estimate average volume; the use of that video to record license plate numbers for vehicle registration addresses to assess which communities would be most affected; and the mailing of a questionnaire to the registered owners of those vehicles seeking information on trip origin, destination, and purpose, and choice of travel alternatives during a bridge closure.
The video count produced a weekday average of 14,915 trips/day and a weekend average of 18,759 trips/day. The vehicle registration information indicated that a majority of trips were by residents of communities near the bridge. The most represented communities were, in numerical order,
Port LudlowPort Ludlow is a census-designated place in Jefferson County, Washington, United States. It is also the name of the marine inlet on which the CDP is located. The CDP's population was 1,968 at the 2000 census. Originally a logging and sawmill community, its economy declined during the first half of...
(8%),
Port TownsendPort Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...
(7%),
Port AngelesPort Angeles is a city in and the county seat of Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 19,038 at the 2010 census. The area's harbor was dubbed Puerto de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles by Spanish explorer Francisco de Eliza in 1791, but by the mid-19th century the name had...
(6%),
SeattleSeattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
(6%),
SequimSequim is a city in Clallam County, Washington, United States. The 2010 US Census counted a population of 6,606. Sequim is located along the Dungeness River near the base of the Olympic Mountains...
(5%),
PoulsboPoulsbo is a city on Liberty Bay in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is the fourth largest city in Kitsap County and one of the main suburbs of Seattle in the Kitsap area. The population was 9,200 at the 2010 census....
(5%),
BremertonBremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 38,790 at the 2011 State Estimate, making it the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerton Annex of Naval Base Kitsap...
(4%), Port Hadlock (2%), and
SilverdaleSilverdale is a census-designated place in Kitsap County, Washington, in the United States. The population was 19,204 at the 2010 census.Despite many attempts at incorporation, Silverdale remains an unincorporated community....
(2%).
The questionnaires revealed that a majority of trips were to and/or from communities near the bridge. On the weekend 48% of westbound trips originated on the north and central
Kitsap PeninsulaThe Kitsap Peninsula is an arm of land that is part of the larger Olympic Peninsula in Washington state that lies west of Seattle across Puget Sound. Hood Canal separates Kitsap Peninsula from the rest of the Olympic Peninsula...
, with 88% of the destinations in areas near Port Ludlow, Port Townsend, Sequim, and Port Angeles. For weekday trips, nearly 55% of westbound trips originated in northern or central Kitsap County with 90% of the destinations in the Port Ludlow, Port Townsend, Sequim, and Port Angeles areas. A large number of eastbound weekday morning trips appeared to be for commuting purposes, with 92% of originating in Port Ludlow, Port Townsend, Sequim, or Port Angeles, and 60% with central or northern Kitsap County as a destination, and 32% ending in
KingKing County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population in the 2010 census was 1,931,249. King is the most populous county in Washington, and the 14th most populous in the United States....
and
SnohomishSnohomish County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. It is named after the Snohomish tribe. Since 2000, the county's population has grown from 606,024 to 713,335 residents , making it one of the fastest-growing in the state, ranking third in overall population after King and...
counties. The evening westbound trips seemed to mirror the morning patterns. When asked the purpose of their trips, respondents reported that for weekend trips 21% were for recreational, 21% for social, 19% for personal, 18% for work, 6% for business, and 4% for medical reasons. For weekday trips 33% were for work, 17% for personal, 14% for business, 11% for medical, 9% for social, and 8% for recreational reasons.
Statistics
- The east approach span weighs more than 3,800 tons (3,400 tonnes) and the west approach span weighs more than 1,000 tons (907 tonnes)
- Peak volumes reach 20,000 vehicles on summer weekends.
- The water depth below the pontoons ranges from 80 to 340 feet (24 to 104 m). In its marine environment, the bridge is exposed to tide swings of 16.5 feet (5 m).
Historical Construction Facts
- After the west half of the bridge sank in 1979, the costs for replacement of the west half and rehabilitation of the east-half was $143 million. The bridge reopened in October 1982 after three years of construction.
Sources
- Burows, Alyssa. "Bulley, William A. (b. 1925)" in the HistoryLink.org Cyberpedia Library, Essay 7289. March 28, 2005 (retrieved July 24, 2006).
- Burows, Alyssa. "William Adair Bugge assumes duties as Director of Highways on July 1, 1949" in the HistoryLink.org Timeline Library, Essay 7256. March 5, 2005 (retrieved July 24, 2006).
- Hamilton, Charles. "Hood Canal Bridge opens on August 12, 1961" in the HistoryLink.org Timeline Library, Essay 7280. March 17, 2005 (retrieved July 24, 2006).
- Hood Canal Bridge East-Half Replacement Closure Mitigation Plan — Preferred Options. Washington State Department of Transportation and Bucher, Willis & Ratliff Corporation. February 2000. http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/B2244DE6-6FA8-4B8C-83AF-55872C2463E8/4531/HCBClosure.PDF
External links