Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge in New York City
(originally Marine Parkway Bridge) is a vertical lift bridge
that crosses Rockaway Inlet
and connects the Rockaway Peninsula
in Queens
, with Marine Parkway to Floyd Bennett Field
, Flatbush Avenue
, and the Marine Park
neighborhood in Brooklyn
. Opened on July 3, 1937, it carries four motor traffic lanes, and a footpath on the western edge. Cyclepaths along both sides of the Parkway connect to the Shore Parkway Greenway and to Flatbush Avenue. The operation of this bridge includes the maintenance of the Marine Parkway from the toll plaza to Jacob Riis Park
. Though a city-owned and operated bridge, it connects two parts of Gateway National Recreation Area
, a unit of the National Park System: Floyd Bennett Field and Jacob Riis Park. The bridge is designated as New York State Route 901B, an unsigned reference route.
As of December 30, 2010, the crossing charge for a two-axle passenger vehicle is increased to $3.25 (cash), $2.17 (token), and $1.80 ($1.45 discount) for E-ZPass
users. The crossing charge for a motorcycle is $2.75 charged in each direction, with a $1.26 discount for E-ZPass users. Certain resident discounts apply to this bridge.
The bridge is owned by the City of New York
and operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
, an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority
.
Built and opened by the Marine Parkway Authority in 1937, it was the longest vertical lift span in the world for automobiles. The curled tops of the towers were designed to give the bridge a whimsical aspect. Following the 1940 merger of the Marine Parkway Authority and Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
, the operation of the bridge fell to TBTA.
In 1978, the bridge was renamed for Gil Hodges
, the former first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers
. Hodges kept a residence in Brooklyn after his team moved to Los Angeles
. He also played for the New York Mets
at the end of his career, and managed the Mets from 1968 until his death in 1972, including victory in the 1969 World Series
.
In 1999 the following elements of the bridge were renovated:
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(originally Marine Parkway Bridge) is a vertical lift bridge
Lift bridge
A vertical-lift bridge or lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck....
that crosses Rockaway Inlet
Rockaway Inlet
Rockaway Inlet is a strait connecting Jamaica Bay, wholly within New York City, with the Atlantic Ocean. It separates the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens from the Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn....
and connects the Rockaway Peninsula
Rockaway, Queens
The Rockaway Peninsula, informally The Rockaways, is the name of a peninsula of Long Island, all of which is located within the New York City borough of Queens. A popular summer resort area since the 1830s, Rockaway has become a mixture of lower, middle, and upper-class neighborhoods...
in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, with Marine Parkway to Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field is New York City's first municipal airport. While no longer used as an operational commercial, military or general aviation airfield, the New York Police Department still flies its helicopters from its heliport base there...
, Flatbush Avenue
Flatbush Avenue (Brooklyn)
Flatbush Avenue is one of the major avenues in the New York City Borough of Brooklyn. It runs from the Manhattan Bridge south-southeastward to Jamaica Bay, where it joins the Marine Parkway Bridge, which connects Brooklyn to the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens...
, and the Marine Park
Marine Park
Marine Park is a neighborhood located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, that lies between Mill Basin and Gerritsen Beach. The neighborhood is mostly squared off in area by Gerritsen Avenue, Flatbush Avenue, Avenue U and Kings Highway. It partly surrounds the eponymous park. The neighborhood...
neighborhood in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. Opened on July 3, 1937, it carries four motor traffic lanes, and a footpath on the western edge. Cyclepaths along both sides of the Parkway connect to the Shore Parkway Greenway and to Flatbush Avenue. The operation of this bridge includes the maintenance of the Marine Parkway from the toll plaza to Jacob Riis Park
Jacob Riis Park
Jacob Riis Park in the New York City borough of Queens, is part of the Jamaica Bay Unit of the Gateway National Recreation Area, and is managed by the National Park Service . It lies at the foot of the Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, toward the southwestern end the Rockaway Peninsula,...
. Though a city-owned and operated bridge, it connects two parts of Gateway National Recreation Area
Gateway National Recreation Area
Gateway National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area in the Port of New York and New Jersey. Scattered over Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island, New York and Monmouth County, New Jersey, it provides recreational opportunities that are rare for a dense urban environment, including ocean...
, a unit of the National Park System: Floyd Bennett Field and Jacob Riis Park. The bridge is designated as New York State Route 901B, an unsigned reference route.
As of December 30, 2010, the crossing charge for a two-axle passenger vehicle is increased to $3.25 (cash), $2.17 (token), and $1.80 ($1.45 discount) for E-ZPass
E-ZPass
E-ZPass is an electronic toll-collection system used on most tolled roads, bridges, and tunnels in the northeastern US, south to Virginia and West Virginia, and west to Illinois. Currently, there are 25 agencies spread across 14 states that make up the . All member agencies use the same technology,...
users. The crossing charge for a motorcycle is $2.75 charged in each direction, with a $1.26 discount for E-ZPass users. Certain resident discounts apply to this bridge.
The bridge is owned by the City of New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and operated by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
MTA Bridges and Tunnels, legal name Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, is a division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, that operates seven intrastate toll bridges and two tunnels in New York City...
, an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York)
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the U.S...
.
History
Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
MTA Bridges and Tunnels, legal name Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, is a division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, that operates seven intrastate toll bridges and two tunnels in New York City...
, the operation of the bridge fell to TBTA.
In 1978, the bridge was renamed for Gil Hodges
Gil Hodges
Gilbert Ray Hodges was an American Major League Baseball first baseman and manager. During an 18-year baseball career, he played in 1943 and from 1947–63, spending most of his career with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers...
, the former first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
. Hodges kept a residence in Brooklyn after his team moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. He also played for the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
at the end of his career, and managed the Mets from 1968 until his death in 1972, including victory in the 1969 World Series
1969 World Series
The 1969 World Series was played between the New York Mets and the Baltimore Orioles, with the Mets prevailing in five games to accomplish one of the greatest upsets in Series history, as that particular Orioles squad was considered to be one of the finest ever...
.
Facts
- The center span is lifted and lowered 100 times a year to allow vessels to pass beneath the roadway.
- The center span is 540 feet (164.6 m) long and is only 55 feet (16.8 m) above the water but can be lifted up to a height of 150' feet above the water.
- Part of the crash of American Airlines Flight 587American Airlines Flight 587American Airlines Flight 587, an Airbus A300, crashed into the Belle Harbor neighborhood of Queens, a borough of New York City, New York, shortly after takeoff from John F. Kennedy International Airport on November 12, 2001. This is the second deadliest U.S...
was filmed from a tollbooth camera on this bridge. - A beautiful view of the Manhattan skyline can be seen from the bridge driving into Brooklyn.
Renovating the Bridge
- The existing steel-grated roadway deck on the lift span was replaced with a concrete-and-steel orthotropic deckOrthotropic deckAn orthotropic bridge or orthotropic deck is one whose deck typically comprises a structural steel deck plate stiffened either longitudinally or transversely, or in both directions. This allows the deck both to directly bear vehicular loads and to contribute to the bridge structure's overall...
. A new concrete ("Jersey") barrier now separates opposing traffic flows. - The elevators and electrical systems in the towers were replaced.
- New variable message signs and traffic control devices were installed on the bridge, approach roadways and toll plaza. A new service building was built at the toll plaza.