Knight Street Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Knight Street
Bridge is a cantilever bridge
which spans the North Arm of the Fraser River
in British Columbia
, connecting Vancouver
and Richmond
, and serving as a feeder route for Highways 91 and 99 to its south. It is located to the east of the Oak Street Bridge
. Besides spanning the river, the bridge also provides access to Mitchell Island
. The bridge has a length of 1436 meters and has clearances of 12.2 by 79.2 metres over the north channel, and 20.1 by 109.7 metres for the south channel. The northern section carries six lanes of traffic, while the southern section carries four.
The bridge has the distinction of having the most bridge motor vehicle accidents in BC. In addition, the bridge's interchange with Marine Drive is in the top three intersections for motor vehicle accidents in BC.
TransLink, the regional transportation authority, is responsible for the bridge.
The construction of the Knight Street Bridge took 5 years, costing about $15 million including the approaches. Electric heating cables were installed in the deck to minimize the use of de-icing salt in the winter. The bridge also carries a water pipe and a gas pipe, with the former being the only water supply to Mitchell Island at the time. The bridge opened on January 15, 1974, and the Fraser Street Bridge was dismantled the next month.
On January 15, 2000 the boom of a mobile crane transported on a barge named T.L. Sharpe, towed by the Sea Cap XII, struck the underside of the Knight Street Bridge at 1:45 PM, damaging the bridge and the fixtures secured underneath its deck. The impact caused the boom to bend and the crane to slide off the barge and sink, and the bridge was closed to traffic for about 48 hours. Water supply to Mitchell Island via the bridge was shut down for 25 days, and an emergency bypass water supply from Vancouver was installed. The incident prompted the City of Richmond to install a second water main to Mitchell Island in 2002.
Knight Street
Knight Street is a major nouth-south roadway in Vancouver and Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. It is a four-lane freeway from Westminster Highway in Richmond to Marine Drive in Vancouver, thus serving as an alternate way to exit Vancouver southbound, rather than the Granville Street/Oak Street...
Bridge is a cantilever bridge
Cantilever bridge
A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams; however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from...
which spans the North Arm of the Fraser River
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, connecting Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
and Richmond
Richmond, British Columbia
Richmond is a coastal city, incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of Metro Vancouver, its neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south, while the Strait of Georgia forms its western border...
, and serving as a feeder route for Highways 91 and 99 to its south. It is located to the east of the Oak Street Bridge
Oak Street Bridge
The Oak Street Bridge is a four-lane bridge crossing the Fraser River connecting Vancouver to Richmond in British Columbia. The main spans are heavy steel deck plate girders continuous over three spans of 60.9, 91.4 and 60.9 metres. The bridge is a part of Highway 99.- History :The Oak Street...
. Besides spanning the river, the bridge also provides access to Mitchell Island
Mitchell Island
Mitchell Island is an island in the North Arm of the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada, located between the cities of Vancouver and Richmond and is incorporated as part of the latter city...
. The bridge has a length of 1436 meters and has clearances of 12.2 by 79.2 metres over the north channel, and 20.1 by 109.7 metres for the south channel. The northern section carries six lanes of traffic, while the southern section carries four.
The bridge has the distinction of having the most bridge motor vehicle accidents in BC. In addition, the bridge's interchange with Marine Drive is in the top three intersections for motor vehicle accidents in BC.
TransLink, the regional transportation authority, is responsible for the bridge.
History
The bridge was built to replace an obsolete span linking the south end of Fraser Street with No. 5 Road in Richmond via Mitchell Island. The Fraser Street Bridge was a through truss built in 1905 with a swing span on the northern side of Mitchell Island. The channel was difficult to navigate, making collisions with ships and barges routine. The height of the Knight Street bridge alleviated this problem.The construction of the Knight Street Bridge took 5 years, costing about $15 million including the approaches. Electric heating cables were installed in the deck to minimize the use of de-icing salt in the winter. The bridge also carries a water pipe and a gas pipe, with the former being the only water supply to Mitchell Island at the time. The bridge opened on January 15, 1974, and the Fraser Street Bridge was dismantled the next month.
On January 15, 2000 the boom of a mobile crane transported on a barge named T.L. Sharpe, towed by the Sea Cap XII, struck the underside of the Knight Street Bridge at 1:45 PM, damaging the bridge and the fixtures secured underneath its deck. The impact caused the boom to bend and the crane to slide off the barge and sink, and the bridge was closed to traffic for about 48 hours. Water supply to Mitchell Island via the bridge was shut down for 25 days, and an emergency bypass water supply from Vancouver was installed. The incident prompted the City of Richmond to install a second water main to Mitchell Island in 2002.