Dames Point Bridge, Cable-stayed bridge in Jacksonville, United States.
Dames Point Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge over the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida, carrying Interstate 295. Two yellow concrete pylon towers rise from the deck, with white cables fanning downward in diagonal lines to form triangular patterns. The main span measures 1,300 feet (396.2 m) and the bridge is 175 feet (53.3 m) high. The deck is a flat roadway, and round concrete protection cells float in the water near the piers.
Construction started in 1985 and concluded in 1989 to meet growing traffic demands in the greater Jacksonville area. The crossing became one of the first major examples of a prestressed concrete cable-stayed design in the United States.
Local drivers typically refer to it as Dames Point rather than using the official Napoleon Bonaparte Broward designation in everyday conversation. The structure links Arlington to the south with areas north of the river and shapes the city's profile as a landmark visible across the region.
The crossing remains open around the clock and provides a direct route for through traffic on Interstate 295. Weather conditions can be noticeable, especially wind, when driving across the long exposed roadway.
The Dames Point Bridge uses a modified harp stay arrangement: main-span cables anchor in a vertical plane on each tower, side-span cables in a horizontal plane, so four cables meet each tower at about the same elevation. Until the Sidney Lanier Bridge opened in Brunswick, Georgia, in 2003, it was the only bridge in the United States with this arrangement.
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