Originally Posted by Tnekster
There are bridges crossing the floodplain now, so of course bridges cross many things. The design is one thing that makes the bridge look out of place to me. The bridge looks cheap. Yes, bridges cross many things, but I've never seen a bridge so expensive and designed to look like a masterpiece (but fails, IMO) span such a insignificant area. Maybe it'll blend in better when the other bridges are built, or maybe they will all look out of place. Like I said before, I saw it lit up before and the light show it had going on looked nice.
As for it being a suspension bridge or not, I was going by what I read here
The scary thing, anyway, was the sand.
In 2009 they started drilling huge holes in the river bottom to sink the piers that would actually carry the weight of the bridge. If it were a real suspension bridge — even if you want to call it "cable-stayed bridge," whatever — it wouldn't need all those piers, which would be the point of building a suspension bridge in the first place, but ...
Where clearly the writer got it wrong.
No, I do.
At the risk of "humble-bragging," I knew what you meant the first time.
Moreover, I'm not sure the important thing for this bridge (or any in Dallas) is that it necessarily goes anywhere (esp. at present). Seems more like the point of the bridge was to be attention-grabbing and architecturally striking. Reasonable minds can differ on whether it succeeds. But the goal is laudable.
Are you from Houston?
Why don't you just leave DFW? Every thread you express the same tired and biased sentiment. What is your goal here? You take the time to read through all of these threads and pick apart every last little thing. You seem to be so unhappy with Dallas yet, at the same time, completely obsessed with it.
In your opinion the bridge looks cheap. In my opinion, it doesn't. I don't feel the need to post every one of my completely arbitrary opinions on here. You shouldn't either.
Yes.
Holy exaggeration. Just because I don't think the bridge looks nice, somehow means that I hate my life in DFW. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings when I said it looked cheap (honest). All you have to do is look at my post history and see that what you're saying isn't true. You just remember the negatives more instead of the positives... it's natural.
Last edited by Trae; 23 March 2012 at 06:02 PM.
Well then you need to open your eyes. The MHHB is not gaudy. Try the words airy, light, or even fresh. Definitely not gaudy.
If anyone reads where you're from, they'll know why you are complaining the way you are-because it's Dallas.
Trae is allowed to give his opinion lets not attack him for not enjoying the bridge as much as others. I certainly don't expect anyone to have the same opinion about the bridge as me.
opinion is fine, but it sounds like the nagging person who nags in the middle of a renovation that they just don't get how the future reno will turn out. You're pretty much talking about phase one of a huge renovation to the flood plain and river area.
Spoke for awhile this evening with the police officers guarding the southern approach. Speed limit will be 30mph per the sign. Today TxDOT put blue tarps over the Riverfront Blvd exit, so I guess that will not be open for traffic on 3/29. There were a number of people on Continental with really fancee cameras and junk taking photos. Officers said it can get busy with people wanting to run out on the bridge and it's a constant crowd.
As I was one of the first dozen folks on Woodall Rodgers when it opened ~30 years ago, I couldn't resist taking the munchkin out for a drive across the the new bridge on opening day. He pronounced it "cool", then went back to his Angry Birds.
The drive across goes fast -- even with the low speed limit it seems to go quicker than the other bridges (once you actually get to the levee).
One annoyance: the exit sign when headed eastbound says "I-35", but the ramp only goes northbound. There's no ramp to head south.
It's sad to see kids and adults alike miss opportunities such as this while busy with video games. Perhaps TXDOT will construct a SB ramp once the Horseshoe Project is complete.
Bridge is open for business as of 10am this morning. It wasn't at 8am, but now there is traffic going across and the barriers are down. Doesn't look like the SB I-35E - WB MMH ramp is open yet, but the EB MMH - NB I-35E ramp is. Big day!!!
You can see traffic on the webcam...
Coming in from OC and the exit ramp to I-35 Northbound is a cluster f. to exit onto a freeway and you have a red light and traffic was backed up in one single lane all the way to the bridge. Thanks TXDOT, your engineers just created another worst traffic spot in Dallas. Drove over from Riverfront in to Oak Cliff and I can tell you no one was doing 30/35 miles per hour as that is just to slow. I really like the design of this bridge but there are big problems with the approaches and layout.
Predictions:
- The railing is too low and there will be cars careening off into the drainage ditch.
- There will be numerous wrecks at the Beckley light since people will be zooming off Woodall and not expect a red light.
- There are two left turn lanes onto Beckley going west on MHHB and those two left turn lanes quickly turn into one lane on Beckley south.
- Taggers are drooling on who is gonna be the first. Since there are DPD cameras, hopefully this will deter that activity.
- Can you walk and bike across? There are sidewalks and there appeared to be bike lanes although not marked.
- How often will they replace the flag or will they fly until tattered and worn. Perhaps a program like the U.S. capitol where you can buy a flag that has flown on the Calatrava, yeh...that's it and then the other bridges can be funded through those monies!
Casper
Can you give Jim Schutze some pointers on how to take good video.
http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfa..._bridge_it.php
Anybody know why the lights are not illuminated since the bridge is now open?
The lights were on when I drove across the bridge around 11:00 so when are you referring?
Interesting.....the web cam was dark except for the standard street lights, nothing on the arch itself. It was around 9:30 pm Friday night.
The webcam doesnt show the lighting very well, i remember waiting for it to light up for the lighting celebration,
i can assure they are on tho.
I counted a 13 second green light at the intersection of the offramp and Continental this morning at 7:30am. That is way too short. Especially when they close the Continental bridge, and everyone will have to use MHH.
The connection to I35 E north or south seems convoluted. I did it Sunday morning just to check it with no traffic. Given the multiple choices you have to make, we likely need more signs at each point to make it clear, especially to the south. The path is counterintuitive and I simply relied on following original instructions.
The thought is likely that the route will not handle very much traffic from OC to 35E. People thinking this will be a short cut will see disappointment. The only real winners are people staying on Woodall for Uptown/downtown or going to 75 or 45.
Last edited by mjblazin; 02 April 2012 at 11:18 AM.
A lot of the traffic problems on the east end is pre-provisioning for Pegasus. See the old 2004 schematics here http://www.projectpegasus.org/images/Pegasus_Sh06.PDF
E v e n t u a l l y you will come off the cover leaf and take the entrance ramp.
Also, there are plans to widen Beckley, so the two turn lanes make sense. Perhaps they should have only stripped one for now. 90% of the traffic off the bridge will go straight or turn at Beckley.
And I bet you a car would more quickly breach the concrete guard rails on continental than MHH.
Maybe they can supplement the flag income with a speed trap for those coming off WR.
Last edited by txdore; 02 April 2012 at 02:34 PM.
What is the difference between Mechanical Engineers and Civil Engineers?
Mechanical Engineers build weapons, Civil Engineers build targets.
Not sure about that... the curb on Continental is pretty massive, with the railing on top of that. But I guess if you were going fast enough, the curb would be just enough to flip you into the concrete railing.
Are they planning on keeping the speed limit at 35mph? That should prevent most accidents, hopefully. Do they have the means to repair this bridge? Costly bridge means costly repairs.
Have they closed the Continental bridge yet?
Nope, probably not until the entire new bridge is open yet. We are still waiting on some connections to Riverfront Blvd. to finish construction.
So, twice in the last 3 days, I have seen fairly large wrecks in the exact same spot: Eastbound Singleton at Beckley. Both were fairly big. What's the deal?
It's nice to see the lighted trees on the west side of the bridge. Also, the 35mph speed limit doesn't sink in for some people. A guy blew past me at 60mph last night. 60mph looks pretty fast when you're only going 35. It was kind of funny to see him stop at the light at the west end of the bridge. Guess he didn't expect it.
Westbound traffic has to make a transition from highway to blvd speeds somewhere. It only makes sense to do it on the east side and not at the last minute on the west side. They might try adding rumble strips and/or "highway ends" signs at about the IH35/riverside overpass.
I expect the east-bound traffic will be up to 70 by the time they reach the arch. ...no harm, no foul.
What is the difference between Mechanical Engineers and Civil Engineers?
Mechanical Engineers build weapons, Civil Engineers build targets.
Crossed the bridge a couple time over the weekend, very nice...especially at night.
Hard not to take it at 60 MPH tho....
"I need no warrant for being, and no word of sanction upon my being. I am the warrant and the sanction."
are there any updates on the status of the continental bridge project?
Continental Bridge is still being used by vehicular traffic, until they finish the stop lights and related infrastructure under the MHH/Woodall Rodgers connector. That's all I know
Flags on both ends of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge are past due for a changing. I wonder who is responsible for that? It makes Dallas look bad.
Nice shot casper. I'll see if I can find out who takes care of that.
Casper
It looks like that falls to the streets department. They are now aware of it, and will get it replaced.
Work has finally settled down a bit and I was able to fly today. I got some good shots of the Sylvan Ave bridge construction. http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...7629997871299/
I also went to the lower chain of wetlands and flew. Those pictures are here. http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...7630059795894/
^cool
I got more pictures of the Sylvan Ave Bridge construction. It looks like it is coming along nicely. And either by luck or by design, it looks like the ramp down to the park has just barely missed one of the big oaks that are nearby.
IMG_9890 by RCdave, on Flickr
Here are all of the pictures. http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...7630452934304/
I went flying on tuesday at the Pavaho Pump station and got some pictures mostly of the pump station, but also of the Sylvan Ave bridge construction.
IMG_0526 by RCdave, on Flickr
all of the pictures are here. http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...7630935397624/
Looks like the Madge has a lot of traffic before rush hour:
Screen shot 2012-09-24 at 4.51.28 PM.jpg
Bridge to "nowhere", eh?
I think part of that argument was always against spending so much excessive money on such a non critical bridge/freeway exit ramp. Also someone did ask me why on earth would you build a bridge to such a "bad neighborhood" my answer was why not.Looks like the Madge has a lot of traffic before rush hour:
<img src="http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=1449"/>
Bridge to "nowhere", eh?
My guess, not that you were asking, is that it was a now or never kind of project. Additionally, the height of the bridge's arch and span is a possible catalyst to finishing the TRC in that it brings awareness to the area.
IMG_1624 by RCdave, on Flickr
Some of the better images from this flight are on my blog at http://planeguyperspective.blogspot....n-morning.html
All of the pictures are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...th/8263624659/
Cost of Margaret McDermott Bridge increases by $12 million, but city to cover with private money, ‘value engineering’
By Robert Wilonsky
4:21 pm on January 11, 2013
http://cityhallblog.dallasnews.com/2...ineering.html/
At Thursday’s meeting of the Regional Transportation Council in Arlington, it was revealed that the so-called “signature elements” of the Margaret McDermott Bridge will cost about $12 million more than expected, increasing its price tag from around $102.6 million to $114.9 million. Turns out, it’s not cheap to dress up the new Interstate 30 bridge, much less make it hikeable and bikeable.
The city of Dallas says it will cover the cost overrun using private money, bond funds and “value engineering” intended to reduce the high price of remaking the so-called Horseshoe. Those figures are revealed in Monday’s Trinity River Corridor Project Council Committee meeting agenda: The Trinity Trust will kick in $5 million, while the Dallas Foundation will add $450,000 to the so-called IH30 Bridge Donation Fund into which private donations are deposited.
...
And the design is complete: Suhm says it will still feature two arches, each 1,125 feet long. She says they’ll be 286 feet high “from the deck of the bridge,” which is more or less three-quarters the height of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge’s arch.
“And that length means it goes almost all the way from one levee to the other,” says Suhm. “It’s a big arch.”
Alas, for now the plan is still to put a bicycle component on one side of the 15-lane bridge and the pedestrian component on the other.
“If we raise additional money in the spring, we’ll do both on both sides,” says Suhm. “But I can’t do that right now.”
Latest rendering:
^ Wish they could fund the third arch to eliminate all those columns for the freeway. Now we'll have two different supports systems for the same bridge.
ˆ Ohhh... thought the arches were for separate ped. bridges on each side... which means the bridge for cars in middle is just a plain ol' conventional bridge...
edit: guess that's what dfwcre8tive meant...
"I need no warrant for being, and no word of sanction upon my being. I am the warrant and the sanction."
wouldn't these "bike/pedestrian components" just drop you off in front of the massive intersection of I-35 and I-30? That hardly gets you into downtown, or anywhere remotely safe or enjoyable to walk or a ride a bike. I sure hope the $12 million isn't for a sidewalk (that will quickly be covered in broken glass and gravel) that takes you from methodist hospital to ....fuel city.
What's the issue with the approaches they mentioned? Does anyone know if
they are using the same contractor as the previous calatrava?
There was also an issue as to how they designed the approaches
which increased the cost significantly...
Build it.
That's a big part of what's holding up the Continental Bridge Park....
As much as people were displeased with the MHuntHill bridges for being too expensive and/or too elaborate, unnecessary to build a a suspension (or cable stayed or whatever....?!), those points are much more applicable to these arches.
The mediator between the head and the hands must be the heart.
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