Main Avenue Bridge

{{Infobox bridge

{{Infobox bridge

| bridge_name = Main Avenue Bridge

| bridge_name = Main Avenue Bridge

| image = Mainbr.jpg

| image = Main Ave Bridge.jpg

| image_size = 300px

| image_size = 300px

| caption = Main Avenue Bridge, as viewed from [[the Flats]], 1999.

| caption = Bridge in 2005

| official_name =

| official_name =

| carries = [[File:OH-2.svg|20px|OH 2|link=]] [[Ohio State Route 2|OH 2]]

| carries = [[File:OH-2.svg|20px|OH 2|link=]] [[Ohio State Route 2|OH 2]]

| map_width =

| map_width =

| coordinates = {{coord|41.4986620|N|81.7051315|W|display=inline,title|region:US_type:landmark|name=Main Avenue Bridge|format=dms}}

| coordinates = {{coord|41.4986620|N|81.7051315|W|display=inline,title|region:US_type:landmark|name=Main Avenue Bridge|format=dms}}

}}The '''Main Avenue (Harold H. Burton Memorial) Bridge''' (alternately '''Main Avenue Viaduct'''<ref>{{GNIS|type=retired|1072276|Main Avenue Viaduct}}</ref>) is a [[cantilever bridge|cantilever truss bridge]] in [[Cleveland, Ohio]] carrying [[Ohio State Route 2]]/[[Cleveland Memorial Shoreway]] over the [[Cuyahoga River]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Main Avenue Bridge |url=http://www.historicbridges.org/ohio/mainavenue/ |publisher=Historic Bridges of Michigan and Elsewhere |access-date=2009-06-29}}</ref> The bridge, completed in 1939, is {{convert|8000|ft|m}} in length, and was the longest elevated structure in Ohio<ref name="ech">"[http://ech.cwru.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=MAB Main Ave. Bridge]". ''Encyclopedia of Cleveland History''.</ref> until the 2007 completion of the [[Veterans' Glass City Skyway]] in [[Toledo, Ohio|Toledo]]. It was named for [[Harold Hitz Burton|Harold H. Burton]], 45th mayor of Cleveland, in late January 1986.<ref>{{cite news |first=Pauline |last=Thoma |title=Bridge over River Cuy renamed |url=http://www-catalog.cpl.org/CLENIX/AAF-7237 |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=1986-01-18 }}<!-- title taken from actual article, not CLENIX record --></ref> The bridge replaced an 1869 bridge at the same site,<ref name="ech" /> and was built in conjunction with construction of the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway.<ref>"[http://ech.case.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=MS3 Memorial Shoreway]". ''Encyclopedia of Cleveland History''.</ref>[[File:Main Avenue Bridge Looking West, Cleveland, Ohio Vintage Postcard.jpg|thumb|Main Avenue Bridge Looking West, Cleveland, Ohio vintage postcard|left]]The bridge received extensive renovations 1991&ndash;1992;<ref name="ech"/><ref>{{cite news |first=Pauline |last=Thoma |title=Making a Drive to the Finish Line |url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F803D9FFAB0CA71%20)&p_docid=0F803D9FFAB0CA71&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F803D9FFAB0CA71&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=U70L59NSMTI0NjMxMjA1MC42NTcxNDc6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=1992-10-17 |access-date=2009-06-29 }}</ref> it subsequently received major structural repairs in 2007<ref>{{cite news |first=Karen |last=Farkas |title=ODOT withheld fears about danger of Main Avenue Bridge collapsing in 2007 |url=http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/odot_withheld_fears_about_dang.html |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=2009-06-28 |access-date=2009-06-29 }}</ref> and again in 2012&ndash;2013, both instances necessitating re-routing of large vehicles.<ref>"[http://www.dot.state.oh.us/districts/D12/Deputy%20Director/News/Pages/ODOT-to-Begin-Repair-Project-on-Main-Avenue-Bridge.aspx ODOT to Begin Repair Project on Main Avenue Bridge (press release)]". ''[[Ohio Department of Transportation]] District 12.'' 2012-07-17. Retrieved 2012-07-18.</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Rachel |last=Dissell |title=ODOT Officials Suddenly Close Main Avenue Bridge to Truck and Bus Traffic in Cleveland |url=http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/07/odot_officials_suddenly_close.html |work=The Plain Dealer |date=2012-07-18 |access-date=2012-07-18 }}</ref><ref>"[http://www.dot.state.oh.us/districts/D12/Deputy%20Director/News/Pages/ODOT-to-Reopen-Main-Avenue-Bridge-to-Heavy-Truck-Traffic.aspx ODOT to Reopen Main Avenue Bridge to Heavy Truck Traffic (press release)]". ''[[Ohio Department of Transportation]] District 12.'' 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-12-11.</ref>

}}The '''Main Avenue (Harold H. Burton Memorial) Bridge''' (alternately '''Main Avenue Viaduct'''<ref>{{GNIS|type=retired|1072276|Main Avenue Viaduct}}</ref>) is a [[cantilever bridge|cantilever truss bridge]] in [[Cleveland, Ohio]] carrying [[Ohio State Route 2]]/[[Cleveland Memorial Shoreway]] over the [[Cuyahoga River]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Main Avenue Bridge |url=http://www.historicbridges.org/ohio/mainavenue/ |publisher=Historic Bridges of Michigan and Elsewhere |access-date=2009-06-29}}</ref> The bridge, completed in 1939, is {{convert|8000|ft|m}} in length, and was the longest elevated structure in Ohio<ref name="ech">"[http://ech.cwru.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=MAB Main Ave. Bridge]". ''Encyclopedia of Cleveland History''.</ref> until the 2007 completion of the [[Veterans' Glass City Skyway]] in [[Toledo, Ohio|Toledo]]. It was named for [[Harold Hitz Burton|Harold H. Burton]], 45th mayor of Cleveland, in late January 1986.<ref>{{cite news |first=Pauline |last=Thoma |title=Bridge over River Cuy renamed |url=http://www-catalog.cpl.org/CLENIX/AAF-7237 |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=1986-01-18 }}<!-- title taken from actual article, not CLENIX record --></ref> The bridge replaced an 1869 bridge at the same site,<ref name="ech" /> and was built in conjunction with construction of the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway.<ref>"[http://ech.case.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=MS3 Memorial Shoreway]". ''Encyclopedia of Cleveland History''.</ref>

[[File:Main Avenue Bridge Looking West, Cleveland, Ohio Vintage Postcard.jpg|thumb|Main Avenue Bridge Looking West, Cleveland, Ohio vintage postcard|left]]

[[File:Mainbr.jpg|thumb|Looking north, 1999|left]]

The bridge received extensive renovations 1991&ndash;1992;<ref name="ech"/><ref>{{cite news |first=Pauline |last=Thoma |title=Making a Drive to the Finish Line |url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_action=doc&p_topdoc=1&p_docnum=1&p_sort=YMD_date:D&p_product=NewsBank&p_text_direct-0=document_id=(%200F803D9FFAB0CA71%20)&p_docid=0F803D9FFAB0CA71&p_theme=aggregated5&p_queryname=0F803D9FFAB0CA71&f_openurl=yes&p_nbid=U70L59NSMTI0NjMxMjA1MC42NTcxNDc6MToxMjoxOTguMzAuMjI4LjA&&p_multi=CPDB |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=1992-10-17 |access-date=2009-06-29 }}</ref> it subsequently received major structural repairs in 2007<ref>{{cite news |first=Karen |last=Farkas |title=ODOT withheld fears about danger of Main Avenue Bridge collapsing in 2007 |url=http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/odot_withheld_fears_about_dang.html |work=[[The Plain Dealer]] |date=2009-06-28 |access-date=2009-06-29 }}</ref> and again in 2012&ndash;2013, both instances necessitating re-routing of large vehicles.<ref>"[http://www.dot.state.oh.us/districts/D12/Deputy%20Director/News/Pages/ODOT-to-Begin-Repair-Project-on-Main-Avenue-Bridge.aspx ODOT to Begin Repair Project on Main Avenue Bridge (press release)]". ''[[Ohio Department of Transportation]] District 12.'' 2012-07-17. Retrieved 2012-07-18.</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Rachel |last=Dissell |title=ODOT Officials Suddenly Close Main Avenue Bridge to Truck and Bus Traffic in Cleveland |url=http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/07/odot_officials_suddenly_close.html |work=The Plain Dealer |date=2012-07-18 |access-date=2012-07-18 }}</ref><ref>"[http://www.dot.state.oh.us/districts/D12/Deputy%20Director/News/Pages/ODOT-to-Reopen-Main-Avenue-Bridge-to-Heavy-Truck-Traffic.aspx ODOT to Reopen Main Avenue Bridge to Heavy Truck Traffic (press release)]". ''[[Ohio Department of Transportation]] District 12.'' 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-12-11.</ref>

In 2013, the Federal Highway Administration listed the Main Avenue Bridge as "structurally deficient" and "fracture critical".<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s)/no by-line.--> |date=2013-09-16 |title=Cleveland's Main Avenue Bridge draws red flags in National Bridge Inventory |url=http://www.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2013/09/clevelands_main_avenue_bridge.html |work=cleveland.com |agency=Associated Press |access-date=2021-10-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/nbi.cfm | title=National Bridge Inventory - Management and Preservation - Bridges & Structures - Federal Highway Administration }}</ref>

The bridge is visible at the end of the "[[Cleveland Rocks]]" version of the opening credits of ''[[The Drew Carey Show]]''.<ref>Compare end of clip with [[Bing Maps]] Bird's Eye View of [http://www.bing.com/maps/?cp=41.498~-81.706&style=o approximate location] (choose eastward view).</ref>

In 2013, the Federal Highway Administration listed the Main Avenue Bridge as "structurally deficient" and "fracture critical".<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s)/no by-line.--> |date=2013-09-16 |title=Cleveland's Main Avenue Bridge draws red flags in National Bridge Inventory |url=http://www.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2013/09/clevelands_main_avenue_bridge.html |work=cleveland.com |agency=Associated Press |access-date=2021-10-07}}</ref>

<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/nbi.cfm | title=National Bridge Inventory - Management and Preservation - Bridges & Structures - Federal Highway Administration }}</ref>

The bridge has been designated as a [[National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark]] by the [[American Society of Civil Engineers]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Hlavaty |first=Kaylyn |date=2021-10-06 |title=Main Avenue Bridge recognized as 'industrial achievement' with historical landmark dedication |url=https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/cleveland-metro/main-avenue-bridge-recognized-as-industrial-achievement-with-historical-landmark-dedication |work=News 5 Cleveland |access-date=2021-10-07}}</ref>

The bridge has been designated as a [[National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark]] by the [[American Society of Civil Engineers]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Hlavaty |first=Kaylyn |date=2021-10-06 |title=Main Avenue Bridge recognized as 'industrial achievement' with historical landmark dedication |url=https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/cleveland-metro/main-avenue-bridge-recognized-as-industrial-achievement-with-historical-landmark-dedication |work=News 5 Cleveland |access-date=2021-10-07}}</ref>