Goethals Bridge

The Goethals Bridge /ˈɡɒθəlz/ connects Elizabeth, New Jersey, to Staten Island, New York, in the United States. It crosses a strait known as Arthur Kill. Operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ), the span was one of the first structures built by the PANYNJ. On the New Jersey side it is located south of Newark Liberty International Airport. The bridge has been grandfathered into Interstate 278, and named for Major General George Washington Goethals, who supervised construction of the Panama Canal and was the first consulting engineer of the PANYNJ.

Design

A steel truss cantilever design by John Alexander Low Waddell, who also designed the Outerbridge Crossing, the Goethals is 672 ft (205 m) long central span, 7,109 feet (2,168 m) long in total, 62 feet (19 m) wide, has a clearance of 135 feet (41.1 m) and has four lanes for traffic. The Port Authority had $3 million of state money and raised $14 million in bonds to build the Goethals Bridge and the Outerbridge Crossing; the Goethals bridge construction began on September 1, 1925 and cost $7.2 million. It and the Outerbridge Crossing opened on June 29, 1928. The Goethals Bridge replaced three ferries and is the immediate neighbor of the Arthur Kill Rail Bridge. Its unusual mid-span height was a requirement of the New Jersey ports. The bridge was named for Major General George Washington Goethals, who supervised construction of the Panama Canal and was the first consulting engineer of the PANYNJ.