Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, British Virgin Islands
Encyclopedia
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
that links Beef Island
Beef Island
Beef Island is an island in the British Virgin Islands. It is located to the east of Tortola, and the two islands are connected by the Queen Elizabeth Bridge. Beef Island is the site of the Terrance B...
with Tortola
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
in the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
. Two bridges have shared the same name, with one lasting from 1966 to 2003, and a new bridge that was completed in 2002.
The First Bridge
The first Queen Elizabeth II Bridge was opened in February 1966 by Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. The bridge was of steel and stone construction and had a single lane. The bridge proved its worth over the years, but with the extension of Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport and the upgrading of the Road Town/Cane Garden Bay road and the Road Town/West End road, a new bridge was needed. Motorists were often aggravated by having to wait for the lights to change on this single lane bridge so that they could cross, and it was becoming increasingly congested.
After a lengthy feasibility study, the entire area was substantially re-developed thanks to the upgrading and extension of the airport and the widening of the Road Town/Cane Garden Bay road and the Road Town/West End road. The bridge was constructed between 2001 and 2002, and was dedicated by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
once more. The bridge is of steel and reinforced concrete construction, and is higher and almost twice as wide as the older bridge. It is able to take large trucks and heavy goods vehicles and has two lanes, compared to the single lane of the old bridge. The bridge has come in line with the increased traffic in the area thanks to the increase in tourism of the British Virgin Islands. The bridge is illuminated at night.
Construction cost
The construction of the new bridge was surrounded by controversy from a relatively early stage. A construction company from the Dominican RepublicDominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
won the tender to build the new bridge, but then ceased work when the bridge was three quarters finished claiming that the tender specifications were inaccurate. Unsubstantiated allegations were circulated about links between the construction company and members of the ruling Virgin Islands Party
Virgin Islands Party (British Virgin Islands)
The Virgin Islands Party is a political party in the British Virgin Islands, led by Premier Ralph T. O'Neal.The Virgin Islands Party has held power in the British Virgin Islands for all except for 15 years since the adoption of the modern Legislative Council in 1967. It was originally formed by...
. Arbitration
Arbitration
Arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution , is a legal technique for the resolution of disputes outside the courts, where the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons , by whose decision they agree to be bound...
proceedings ensued between the contractors and the British Virgin Islands government. Eventually a revised price was agreed, and the final cost of the bridge was approximately 6.73 million U.S. dollars, for a bridge just over 70 meters (230 ft) in length over a shallow straight. Various (unsourced) claims have been advanced from time to time that the bridge is meter for meter and foot for foot the most expensive in the world. In 2003 the Government agreed to pay a further US$115,000 to demolish the old bridge.
Yacht racing
The Royal BVI Yacht Club sponsors an annual "round Tortola" yacht race. The event became slightly infamous when in the 1970s the Territory's resident surgeon, Robin Tattersall, persuaded the bridge operators to lift the old bridge enabling him to avoid circumventing Beef Islands as well. Unfortunately the bridge got stuck and could not be reopened for two days, cutting off the airport. Since that date, the race instructions have stipulated Beef Island to port to ensure both islands are circumnavigated. The new bridge cannot now be raised (it is solid concrete), but the race rules still remain the same in any event.Tolls
Until June 2004 the bridge was a toll bridgeToll bridge
A 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...
. After that date it was made free of charge. Prior to that, Government accounts regularly showed that the tolls cost more to collect than the revenue that they raised, although the toll was popular with tourists, as the toll collector used a half coconut shell nailed to a plan of wood to collect the 25¢ (later 50¢) toll. The government had considered installing an automatic toll booth, but it would have cost $400,000.