New York City

The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge links Staten Island with Brooklyn. Its Staten Island anchorage is at Fort Wadsworth; its Brooklyn anchorage is at Fort Hamilton. The bridge was designed by Othmar Ammann, designer of the Triborough, Bronx-Whitestone, Throgs Neck, George Washington and Bayonne bridges. Construction began on August 13, 1959, and opened for traffic on November 21, 1964; the lower deck opened to traffic on June 28, 1969. It is named after Giovanni di Verrazano, the Italian explorer who discovered New York Harbor in 1524.

Statistics

Length of Main Span 4,260 feet

Anchorage-to-Anchorage Length 6,690 feet

Total Length, including Approaches 13,700 feet

Width 103 feet

Number of Traffic Lanes 12 (6 per deck)

Height of Towers Above Water 693 feet

Highest Clearance Above Water 228 feet

Number of Cables 4

Diameter of each Cable 36 inches

Number of Wires Per Cable 26,108

Total Length of Wires 143,000 miles

Total Cost of Construction $320,126,000

Questions or comments about this page?

Metropolitan Transit Authority. www.mta.nyc.ny.us/bandt/html/veraz.htm
Eastern Roads. www.nycroads.com/crossings/verrazano-narrows/

George Washington Bridge

The Robinson Library
Technology.--Bridge Engineering.--Individual Bridges.

Search This Site | Usage Guidelines | About the Library | Contact Information | Navigation Help