A thousand birthday greetings for US-Canada Thousand Island Bridge

The Canada-US Thousand Island Bridge system celebrated its 80th birthday in August with presentations and an open house at its US headquarters. The 33.7km three-bridge system over the St Lawrence River took 16 months to build and was completed 10 weeks ahead of schedule. It runs from Collins Landing near Alexandria Bay in the US state of New York to the small town of Ivy Lea in the Canadian province of Ontario. The system connects US Interstate 81 and Canada’s Highway 401, a major motorway between Montre
August 21, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
The Canada-US Thousand Island Bridge system celebrated its 80th birthday in August with presentations and an open house at its US headquarters.


The 33.7km three-bridge system over the St Lawrence River took 16 months to build and was completed 10 weeks ahead of schedule. It runs from Collins Landing near Alexandria Bay in the US state of New York to the small town of Ivy Lea in the Canadian province of Ontario. The system connects US Interstate 81 and Canada’s Highway 401, a major motorway between Montreal and Toronto, ending in Windsor on the Ontario border with the US state of Michigan.

The 1,370m crossing over the American channel of the river - from the US mainland to Wellesley Island - consists of a suspension bridge with a main span of around 245m and nearly 46m of clearance above the river.

The Canadian crossing includes the 183m continuous Warren Truss span connecting Hill Island to Constance Island, a steel arch of 106m spans from Constance Island to Georgina Island and a suspension bridge of 229m from Georgina Island to the Canadian mainland. The Canadian span from abutment to abutment is 1,015m and the suspension span provides 37m of river clearance.

The boundary at the International Rift boundary – the channel between Wellesley Island and Hill Island - is bridged by two parallel 27.4m rigid-frame arched spans of reinforced concrete with masonry facing. Originally there was only one bridge at boundary but due to increased traffic it was twinned in 1959.

Operation of the Thousand Islands Bridge system is shared under a joint agreement that created the US based Thousand Islands Bridge Authority which estimates that there are 2,000 vehicle-cross the annually. The system’s original consulting engineer was Robinson and Steinman of New York City that  continues to do so today but as 3220 Parsons Transportation, notes the authority.

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • New NY Bridge - Tappan Zee - main span towers poured
    December 16, 2016
    One of the largest US infrastructure projects is nearer completion after recent topping out of the eight main span towers of the New NY Bridge. The final concrete pour was in mid-December and all piles - more than 1,000 - have been installed in Hudson River. To date, 3,000 roadway panels for the approaches - making 5.5km in length - have been installed, according to the New York State Thruway Authority, owner of the New NY Bridge project. The New NY Bridge, also called the Tappan Zee Bridge, is on tra
    Read More
  • VIDEO of specialist contractor’s successful bridge demolition in Canada
    May 12, 2015
    Specialist contractor Priestly Demolition recently carried out a successful project in Ontario, Canada. The firm used its specialist skills to remove The Fountain Road Overpass, crossing Highway 401. A fleet of excavators equipped with demolition tools, including breakers and cutting equipment, was brought into to carry out the work using an overnight closure of the highway. Other machines including wheeled loaders and backhoe loaders were used to remove the broken out materials and to carry out other general duties.
    Read More
  • “Structurally deficient” US bridges need warning signs, says ARTBA
    April 10, 2015
    A US construction sector group wants warning signs to be posted on bridges designated “structurally deficient" and in need of repair by state engineers. More than 61,000 structurally deficient bridges remain in need of significant repair, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), which analysed the US Department of Transport’s National Bridge Inventory database. However, by the end of 2014 there were more than 2,000 fewer structurally deficient structures than in 20
    Read More
  • Doosan launches DX160LC-5 and DX180LC-5 high track excavators
    December 15, 2017
    Doosan Bobcat EMEA has launched the DX160LC-5 HT and DX180LC-5 HT Stage IV compliant high track crawler excavators. They complement the company’s standard configuration DX140LC-5 14tonne and DX180LC-5 18tonne mid-range excavators. Doosan says that the DX160LC-5 HT excavator combines the upper structure from the DX140LC-5 14tonne model with an 18tonne class high track undercarriage system, increasing the ground clearance from 410mm in the DX140LC-5 to 615 mm.
    Read More

Highlighted Content