Tappan Zee takedown into the Hudson River

A controlled explosion demolished the eastern span of the old cantilever Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River near New York City. The bridge, nearly 5km long, was opened in 1955 to carry traffic between the southern New England area and other regions west of the Hudson. Around 140,000 vehicles used the bridge daily. But the old bridge had deteriorated substantially and would have been too expensive to maintain or keep open for lighter traffic use. It became redundant after the new bridge of the
January 17, 2019 Read time: 2 mins
A controlled explosion demolished the eastern span of the old cantilever Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River near New York City.


The bridge, nearly 5km long, was opened in 1955 to carry traffic between the southern New England area and other regions west of the Hudson. Around 140,000 vehicles used the bridge daily.

But the old bridge had deteriorated substantially and would have been too expensive to maintain or keep open for lighter traffic use. It became redundant after the new bridge of the same name, built parallel to it, opened last year. The remaining span will be dismantled later this year.

The new twin cable-stayed Tappan Zee Bridge, officially named the Governor Mario Cuomo Bridge after former New York governor Mario Cuomo, carries the carries the I-87 and I-287. It also has a shared bicycle and pedestrian lane. Construction of the new bridge started in 2013 and the north span was opened in August 2017 with all lanes opened by last September.

The Tappan Zee is named for an American Indian tribe from the area called Tappan while the word Zee mean sea in Dutch, who were the first Europeans to settle in the area.

Road Structures

Related Content

  • Colorado river bridge relieves congestion
    February 7, 2012
    Built in the shadow of the Hoover Dam, a new bridge is set to takes its place as another major tourist attraction. Patrick Smith reports
    Read More
  • Washington DC’s historic bridge replacement project
    June 11, 2019
    The project to replace a historic bridge in US capital Washington DC is providing major challenges for its builders - Mike Woof writes
    Read More
  • VIDEO: Successful explosive bridge demolition in Kentucky
    July 28, 2016
    A successful explosive bridge demolition job has been carried out in the US State of Kentucky. After a short delay, demolition specialists managed to remove the old Eggners Ferry Bridge successfully and without incident. The explosives broke up the four middle spans of the structure. The demolition job was not without its challenges, with concern over the presence of nesting ospreys on the structure. Demolition personnel had to keep a distance of 90m from the nesting area, which delayed preparations.
    Read More
  • The Mersey Gateway bridge project continues on schedule
    October 18, 2016
    Work continues on the 2.3km Mersey Gateway signature bridge project close to Liverpool in the UK. David Arminas reports on some of the construction highlights. Under construction is a cable-stayed structure with three towers that will span the Mersey River’s expansive mud flats between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes near Liverpool. Including the approach viaducts on each side, it will be 2.3km long with a river span of 1km. The main bridge deck will be reinforced concrete. The 80m-high central tower will b
    Read More

Highlighted Content