The Madison Avenue Bridge is a four lane swing bridge that crosses the Harlem River in New York City, connecting Madison Avenue in Manhattan with East 138th Street in the Bronx. It was designed by Alfred P. Boller and built in 1910 to replace and double the capacity of another earlier swing bridge dating from 1884. The bridge is operated and maintained by the New York City Department of Transportation.
In 1874, residents in the vicinity asked for the construction of a bridge from 1 38th Street (then in Westchester) to Madison Avenue in New York, and funds were appropriated the following year. Due to the uneven topography and relatively undeveloped landscape, the proposed bridge required substantial pier and approach construction. The superstructure, composed of iron, was contracted to the Keystone Bridge Company in 1882. The swing bridge was opened in 1884 at a cost of $509,106. The area's growth quickly necessitated the construction of another, larger bridge. The current bridge opened on July 18, 1910, at a cost of $1,155,987. |
