100-719: Mighty Mac or Mighty Macs may refer to: Mackinac Bridge , a suspension bridge in Michigan known as the Mighty Mac Mighty Mac, nickname of the USS McKean (DD-784) , a destroyer Mighty Mac, nickname of the USS McClusky (FFG-41) , a frigate Mighty Mac, nickname of the USS Mackinac (AVP-13) , a seaplane tender The Mighty Mac, winning horse in
200-664: A suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate , the one-mile-wide (1.6 km) strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean . The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco , California —the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula —to Marin County , carrying both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 across the strait. It also carries pedestrian and bicycle traffic, and
300-474: A "bridge within a bridge" in the southern abutment, to avoid the need to demolish Fort Point, a pre–Civil War masonry fortification viewed, even then, as worthy of historic preservation. He penned a graceful steel arch spanning the fort and carrying the roadway to the bridge's southern anchorage. Ellis was a Greek scholar and mathematician who at one time was a University of Illinois professor of engineering despite having no engineering degree. He eventually earned
400-499: A $ 300 million renovation program, which would include completely replacing the bridge deck. Painting of the bridge takes seven years, and when painting of the bridge is complete, it begins again. The current painting project began in 1999 and was expected to take 20 years to complete because the lead-based paint needs to be removed, incurring additional disposal requirements. The bridge celebrated its 150 millionth vehicle crossing on September 6, 2009. Five workers died during
500-494: A 40% lighter, and stronger, steel orthotropic deck panels, over 401 nights without closing the roadway completely to traffic. The roadway was also widened by two feet, resulting in outside curb lane width of 11 feet, instead of 10 feet for the inside lanes. This deck replacement was the bridge's greatest engineering project since it was built and cost over $ 68 million. The bridge-opening celebration in 1937 began on May 27 and lasted for one week. The day before vehicle traffic
600-524: A 55-mile-long (89 km) railroad bridge across the Bering Strait . At the time, Strauss had completed some 400 drawbridges —most of which were inland—and nothing on the scale of the new project. Strauss's initial drawings were for a massive cantilever on each side of the strait, connected by a central suspension segment, which Strauss promised could be built for $ 17 million (equivalent to $ 476 million in 2023). A suspension-bridge design
700-481: A bridge could not be built across the 6,700-foot (2,000-metre) strait, which had strong, swirling tides and currents, with water 372 ft (113 m) deep at the center of the channel, and frequent strong winds. Experts said that ferocious winds and blinding fogs would prevent construction and operation. Although the idea of a bridge spanning the Golden Gate was not new, the proposal that eventually took hold
800-461: A bridge. After a report by the engineers in January 1951, the state legislature authorized the sale of $ 85 million (equivalent to $ 783 million in 2023 ) in bonds for bridge construction on April 30, 1952. However, a weak bond market in 1953 forced a delay of more than a year before the bonds could be issued. David B. Steinman was appointed as the design engineer in January 1953 and by
900-600: A central suspension segment) was unacceptable from a visual standpoint. The final suspension design was conceived and championed by Leon Moisseiff , the engineer of the Manhattan Bridge in New York City. Irving Morrow, a relatively unknown residential architect, designed the overall shape of the bridge towers, the lighting scheme, and Art Deco elements, such as the tower decorations, streetlights, railing, and walkways. The famous International Orange color
1000-463: A cross wind, and the center two lanes are open grid to allow vertical (upward) air flow, which fairly precisely cancels the lift, making the roadway stable in design in winds of up to 150 miles per hour (240 km/h). The Mackinac Bridge is a toll bridge on Interstate 75 (I-75). The US Highway 27 (US 27) designation was initially extended across the bridge. In November 1960, sections of I-75 freeway opened from Indian River north to
1100-588: A degree in civil engineering from the University of Illinois prior to designing the Golden Gate Bridge and spent the last twelve years of his career as a professor at Purdue University. He became an expert in structural design, writing the standard textbook of the time. Ellis did much of the technical and theoretical work that built the bridge, but he received none of the credit in his lifetime. In November 1931, Strauss fired Ellis and replaced him with
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#17327755189641200-582: A former subordinate, Clifford Paine, ostensibly for wasting too much money sending telegrams back and forth to Moisseiff. Ellis, obsessed with the project and unable to find work elsewhere during the Depression, continued working 70 hours per week on an unpaid basis, eventually turning in ten volumes of hand calculations. With an eye toward self-promotion and posterity, Strauss downplayed the contributions of his collaborators who, despite receiving little recognition or compensation, are largely responsible for
1300-481: A link became feasible. Joseph Strauss served as chief engineer for the project, with Leon Moisseiff , Irving Morrow and Charles Ellis making significant contributions to its design. The bridge opened to the public in 1937 and has undergone various retrofits and other improvement projects in the decades since. The Golden Gate Bridge is described in Frommer's travel guide as "possibly the most beautiful, certainly
1400-533: A local whale watching operator. Tolls are only collected from southbound traffic at the toll plaza on the San Francisco side of the bridge. All-electronic tolling has been in effect since 2013, and drivers may either pay using the FasTrak electronic toll collection device, using the license plate tolling program, or via a one time payment online. Effective July 1, 2025 ( 2025-07-01 ) ,
1500-445: A metal curb, but railings between the walkways and the traffic lanes were added in 2003, primarily as a measure to prevent bicyclists from falling into the roadway. The bridge was designated as part of U.S. Bicycle Route 95 in 2021. The main walkway is on the eastern side, and is open for use by both pedestrians and bicycles in the morning to mid-afternoon during weekdays (5:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.), and to pedestrians only for
1600-535: A movable barrier since the 1980s, only in March 2005 did the Bridge Board of Directors commit to finding funding to complete the $ 2 million study required prior to the installation of a movable median barrier. Installation of the resulting barrier was completed on January 11, 2015, following a closure of 45.5 hours to private vehicle traffic, the longest in the bridge's history. The new barrier system, including
1700-486: A scaffold (secured by undersized bolts) with twelve men on it fell into and broke through the safety net; two of the twelve survived the 200-foot (61 m) fall into the water. The bridge opened May 27, 1937. The Round House Café diner was then included in the southeastern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, adjacent to the tourist plaza which was renovated in 2012. The Round House Café, an Art Deco design by Alfred Finnila completed in 1938, has been popular throughout
1800-404: A site near the bridge. As part of the fiftieth anniversary celebration in 1987, the Golden Gate Bridge district again closed the bridge to automobile traffic and allowed pedestrians to cross it on May 24. This Sunday morning celebration attracted 750,000 to 1,000,000 people, and ineffective crowd control meant the bridge became congested with roughly 300,000 people, causing the center span of
1900-687: A structure could span the straits. In 1884, a store owner in St. Ignace published a newspaper advertisement that included a reprint of an artist's conception of the Brooklyn Bridge with the caption "Proposed bridge across the Straits of Mackinac". The idea of the bridge was discussed in the Michigan Legislature as early as the 1880s. At the time, the Straits of Mackinac area was becoming a popular tourist destination, especially following
2000-484: A theoretical analysis of suspension-bridge stability problems, which recommended that future bridge designs include deep stiffening trusses to support the bridge deck and an open-grid roadway to reduce its wind resistance. Both of these features were incorporated into the design of the Mackinac Bridge. The stiffening truss is open to reduce wind resistance. The road deck is shaped as an airfoil to provide lift in
2100-408: A thin, flexible roadway would flex in the wind, greatly reducing stress by transmitting forces via suspension cables to the bridge towers. Although the Golden Gate Bridge design has proved sound, a later Moisseiff design, the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge , collapsed in a strong windstorm soon after it was completed, because of an unexpected aeroelastic flutter . Ellis was also tasked with designing
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#17327755189642200-412: A total cost of $ 100 million and the lives of five workers. Contrary to popular belief, none of them are entombed in the bridge. It opened to traffic on schedule on November 1, 1957, and the ferry service ceased on the same day. The bridge was formally dedicated on June 25, 1958. G. Mennen Williams was governor during the construction of the Mackinac Bridge. He began the tradition of the governor leading
2300-670: Is a popular sailing destination for boats of all types, which make it easier to get a closer view to the underlying structure of the bridge. On June 25, 1958, to coincide with that year's celebration of the November 1957 opening, the United States Postal Service (USPS) released a 3¢ commemorative stamp featuring the recently completed bridge. It was entitled "Connecting the Peninsulas of Michigan" and 107,195,200 copies were issued. The USPS again honored
2400-606: Is designated as part of U.S. Bicycle Route 95 . Recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Wonders of the Modern World , the bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco and California. The idea of a fixed link between San Francisco and Marin had gained increasing popularity during the late 19th century, but it was not until the early 20th century that such
2500-624: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Mackinac Bridge The Mackinac Bridge ( / ˈ m æ k ə n ɔː / MAK -ə-naw ; also referred to as the Mighty Mac or Big Mac ) is a suspension bridge that connects the Upper and Lower peninsulas of the U.S. state of Michigan . It spans the Straits of Mackinac , a body of water connecting Lake Michigan and Lake Huron , two of
2600-488: Is estimated to be 80,000 miles (130,000 km). Each of the bridge's two towers has approximately 600,000 rivets . In the 1960s, when the Bay Area Rapid Transit system (BART) was being planned, the engineering community had conflicting opinions about the feasibility of running train tracks north to Marin County over the bridge. In June 1961, consultants hired by BART completed a study that determined
2700-430: Is officially an orange vermilion called international orange . The color was selected by consulting architect Irving Morrow because it complements the natural surroundings and enhances the bridge's visibility in fog. The bridge was originally painted with red lead primer and a lead-based topcoat, which was touched up as required. In the mid-1960s, a program was started to improve corrosion protection by stripping
2800-414: Is split with three lanes in each direction. From 1968 to 2015, opposing traffic was separated by small, plastic pylons ; during that time, there were 16 fatalities resulting from 128 head-on collisions. To improve safety, the speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge was reduced from 50 to 45 mph (80 to 72 km/h) on October 1, 1983. Although there had been discussion concerning the installation of
2900-720: The Eastern Hemisphere , including the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge in Japan (6,532 ft or 1,991 m), but the long leadups to the anchorages on the Mackinac make its total shoreline-to-shoreline length of 26,372 feet —28 feet (8.5 m) short of five miles (8.0 km)—longer than the Akashi Kaikyo (2.4 mi or 3.9 km). The length of the bridge's main span is 3,800 feet (1,158 m), which makes it
3000-671: The Great Lakes . Opened in 1957, the 26,372-foot-long (4.995 mi; 8.038 km) bridge is the world's 27th-longest main span and is the longest suspension bridge between anchorages in the Western Hemisphere. The Mackinac Bridge is part of Interstate 75 (I-75) and carries the Lake Michigan and Huron components of the Great Lakes Circle Tour across the straits; it is also a segment of
3100-554: The Mackinac Bridge Walk across it every Labor Day . Senator Prentiss M. Brown has been called the "father of the Mackinac Bridge", and was honored with a special memorial bridge token created by the Mackinac Bridge Authority. The bridge officially achieved its 100 millionth crossing exactly 40 years after its dedication, on June 25, 1998. The 50th anniversary of the bridge's opening
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3200-583: The Strategic Air Command , operating from Lockbourne AFB flew his Boeing B-47 Stratojet beneath the bridge. Following a general court-martial , he was grounded for life. A feature-length documentary entitled Building the Mighty Mac was produced by Hollywood filmmaker Mark Howell in 1997 and was shown on PBS . The program features numerous interviews with the key people who built the structure and includes restored 16mm color footage of
3300-547: The University of Cincinnati , he placed a brick from his alma mater's demolished McMicken Hall in the south anchorage before the concrete was poured. Strauss also innovated the use of movable safety netting beneath the men working, which saved many lives. Nineteen men saved by the nets over the course of the project formed the Half Way to Hell Club . Nonetheless, eleven men were killed in falls, ten on February 17, 1937, when
3400-501: The 1981 Powers Gold Cup and 1984 Cathcart Challenge Cup Mighty Macs, nickname of the sports teams of Immaculata University , formerly Immaculata College The Mighty Macs , a 2009 film about the women's basketball team of what was then Immaculata College Mighty Mac, nickname of the sports teams of Bishop McNamara High School , Forestville, Maryland Mighty Macs, nickname of the sports teams of Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School , Chicago, Illinois Topics referred to by
3500-582: The Golden Gate ," was chosen to commemorate the event. Strauss wrote a poem that is now on the Golden Gate Bridge entitled "The Mighty Task is Done." The next day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington, D.C. signaling the official start of vehicle traffic over the Bridge at noon. Weeks of civil and cultural activities called "the Fiesta" followed. A statue of Strauss was moved in 1955 to
3600-667: The Golden Gate Bridge had the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,200 feet (1,280 m). Since 1964 its main span length has been surpassed by eighteen bridges ; it now has the second-longest main span in the Americas , after the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in New York City. The total length of the Golden Gate Bridge from abutment to abutment is 8,981 feet (2,737 m). The Golden Gate Bridge's clearance above high water averages 220 feet (67 m) while its towers, at 746 feet (227 m) above
3700-560: The Mackinac Bridge as the subject of its 2010 priority mail $ 4.90 stamp, which went on sale February 3. The bridge authority and MDOT unveiled the stamp, which featured a "seagull's-eye view" of the landmark, with a passing freighter below. Artist Dan Cosgrove worked from panoramic photographs to create the artwork. This is one of several designs that Cosgrove has produced for the USPS. On April 24, 1959, Captain John S. Lappo, an officer in
3800-477: The Mackinac Bridge can listen to an AM radio broadcast that recounts the history of the bridge and provides updates on driving conditions. The first Mackinac Bridge Walk was held in 1958, when it was led by Governor G. Mennen Williams . The first walk was held during the Bridge's Dedication Ceremony held in late June, and has been held on Labor Day since 1959. Until 2018, school buses from local districts transported walkers from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace to begin
3900-611: The Marin Headlands Express bus line, but this was indefinitely suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Marin Airporter, a private company, also offers service across the bridge between Marin County and San Francisco International Airport . A visitor center and gift shop, originally called the "Bridge Pavilion" (since renamed the "Golden Gate Bridge Welcome Center"), is located on the San Francisco side of
4000-619: The Michigan Legislature created the Mackinac Straits Bridge Authority to explore possible methods of constructing and funding the proposed bridge. The Legislature authorized the Authority to seek financing for the project. In the mid-1930s, during the Great Depression, when numerous infrastructure projects received federal aid, the Authority twice attempted to obtain federal funds for the project but
4100-652: The Southern Pacific-Golden Gate Ferries, Ltd., the largest ferry operation in the world. Once for railroad passengers and customers only, Southern Pacific's automobile ferries became very profitable and important to the regional economy. The ferry crossing between the Hyde Street Pier in San Francisco and Sausalito Ferry Terminal in Marin County took approximately 20 minutes and cost $ 1.00 per vehicle prior to 1937, when
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4200-425: The Straits of Mackinac. All three men were killed. With the exception of the annual Mackinac Bridge Walk on Labor Day, the bridge is not accessible to pedestrians. As a result, suicides by jumping from the bridge have been rare, with the most recent confirmed case taking place on December 31, 2012. No jumps have occurred during the annual bridge walks. There have been roughly a dozen suicides by people jumping off
4300-460: The Straits of Mackinac. It cannot continue to grow as it ought with clumsy and inadequate ferries for any portion of the year. By 1928, the ferry service had become so popular and so expensive to operate that Governor Fred W. Green ordered the department to study the feasibility of building a bridge across the strait. The department deemed the idea feasible, estimating the cost at $ 30 million (equivalent to $ 421 million in 2023 ). In 1934,
4400-465: The Straits region starting in the 1910s. The state of Michigan initiated an automobile ferry service between Mackinaw City and St. Ignace in 1923; it eventually operated nine ferry boats that would carry as many as 9,000 vehicles per day. Traffic backups could stretch as long as 16 miles (26 km). After the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883, local residents began to imagine that such
4500-504: The U.S. North Country National Scenic Trail . The bridge connects the city of St. Ignace to the north with the village of Mackinaw City to the south. Envisioned since the 1880s, the bridge was designed by the engineer David B. Steinman and completed in 1957 only after many decades of struggles to begin construction. The bridge has since become an iconic symbol of the state of Michigan. The bridge opened on November 1, 1957, connecting two peninsulas linked for decades by ferries. At
4600-403: The bridge are homes to varieties of wildlife such as bobcats , harbor seals, and sea lions. Three species of cetaceans (whales) that had been absent in the area for many years have shown recent recoveries/(re)colonizations in the vicinity of the bridge; researchers studying them have encouraged stronger protections and recommended that the public watch them from the bridge or from land, or use
4700-415: The bridge as of 2013 . Some individuals have difficulty crossing bridges, a phenomenon known as gephyrophobia . The Mackinac Bridge Authority has a Drivers Assistance Program that provides drivers for those with gephyrophobia, or anyone who is more comfortable having someone else drive them across. More than a thousand people use this service every year. Those interested can arrange, either by phone or with
4800-636: The bridge as part of the concurrency between U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 . Although part of the National Highway System , the bridge is not officially part of California's Highway System . For example, under the California Streets and Highways Code § 401 , Route 101 ends at "the approach to the Golden Gate Bridge" and then resumes at "a point in Marin County opposite San Francisco". The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District has jurisdiction over
4900-443: The bridge to flatten out under the weight. Although the bridge is designed to flex in that way under heavy loads, and was estimated not to have exceeded 40% of the yielding stress of the suspension cables, bridge officials stated that uncontrolled pedestrian access was not being considered as part of the 75th anniversary on Sunday, May 27, 2012, because of the additional law enforcement costs required "since 9/11. " Until 1964,
5000-518: The bridge was not advisable. Aesthetics was the foremost reason why the first design of Joseph Strauss was rejected. Upon re-submission of his bridge construction plan, he added details, such as lighting, to outline the bridge's cables and towers. In 1999, it was ranked fifth on the List of America's Favorite Architecture by the American Institute of Architects . The color of the bridge
5100-596: The bridge's construction. The history and building of the bridge was featured in a 2003 episode of the History Channel TV show Modern Marvels . On July 19, 2007, the Detroit Science Center unveiled an 80-foot-long (24 m), 19-foot-tall (5.8 m) scale model of the Mackinac Bridge. The exhibit was part of the state's 50th anniversary celebration of the bridge. Sherwin-Williams supplied authentic Mackinac Bridge-colored paint for
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#17327755189645200-490: The bridge's suspension section was capable of supporting service on a new lower deck. In July 1961, one of the bridge's consulting engineers, Clifford Paine, disagreed with their conclusion. In January 1962, due to more conflicting reports on feasibility, the bridge's board of directors appointed an engineering review board to analyze all the reports. The review board's report, released in April 1962, concluded that running BART on
5300-563: The bridge, adjacent to the southeast parking lot. It opened in 2012, in time for the bridge's 75th-anniversary celebration. A cafe, outdoor exhibits, and restroom facilities are located nearby. On the Marin side of the bridge, only accessible from the northbound lanes, is the H. Dana Bower Rest Area and Vista Point, named after the first landscape architect for the California Division of Highways. Lands and waters under and around
5400-664: The bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District, authorized by an act of the California Legislature , was incorporated in 1928 as the official entity to design, construct, and finance the Golden Gate Bridge. However, after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 , the District was unable to raise the construction funds, so it lobbied for a $ 30 million bond measure (equivalent to $ 532 million today). The bonds were approved in November 1930, by votes in
5500-429: The construction of the bridge: All five men are memorialized on a plaque near the bridge's northern end (Bridge View Park). Contrary to folklore, no bodies are embedded in the concrete. One worker has died since the bridge was completed. Daniel Doyle fell 60 to 70 feet (18 to 21 m) from scaffolding on August 7, 1997. He survived the fall but fell victim to the 50 °F (10 °C) water temperature. His body
5600-488: The counties affected by the bridge. The construction budget at the time of approval was $ 27 million ($ 492 million today). However, the District was unable to sell the bonds until 1932, when Amadeo Giannini , the founder of San Francisco–based Bank of America , agreed on behalf of his bank to buy the entire issue in order to help the local economy. Construction began on January 5, 1933. The project cost more than $ 35 million ($ 610 million in 2023 dollars ), and
5700-583: The creation of Mackinac National Park on Mackinac Island in 1875. At a July 1888 meeting of the board of directors of the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Cornelius Vanderbilt II proposed that a bridge be built across the straits, of a design similar to the one then under construction across the Firth of Forth in Scotland . This would advance commerce in the region and help lengthen the resort season of
5800-615: The duration of the event. The Bridge Walk is the only day of the year that hikers can hike this section of the North Country National Scenic Trail . During the summer months, the Upper Peninsula and the Mackinac Bridge have become a major tourist destination. In addition to visitors to Mackinac Island, the bridge has attracted interest from a diverse group of tourists including bridge enthusiasts, bird-watchers, and photographers. The Straits area
5900-408: The eastern walkway. Bus service across the bridge is provided by one public transportation agency, Golden Gate Transit , which runs numerous bus lines throughout the week. The southern end of the bridge, near the toll plaza and parking lot, is also accessible daily from 5:30 a.m. to midnight by San Francisco Muni line 28. Muni formerly offered Saturday and Sunday service across the bridge on
6000-487: The end of 1953, estimates and contracts had been negotiated. A civil engineer at the firm, Abul Hasnat, did the preliminary plans for the bridge. Total cost estimate at that time was $ 95 million (equivalent to $ 864 million in 2023 ) with estimated completion by November 1, 1956. Tolls collected were to pay for the bridge in 20 years. Construction began on May 7, 1954. The bridge was built under two major contracts. The Merritt-Chapman and Scott Corporation of New York
6100-477: The exception being Humboldt County , whose residents opposed the bridge's construction and the traffic it would generate. Strauss was the chief engineer in charge of the overall design and construction of the bridge project. However, because he had little understanding or experience with cable-suspension designs, responsibility for much of the engineering and architecture fell on other experts. Strauss's initial design proposal (two double cantilever spans linked by
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#17327755189646200-491: The final form of the bridge. He succeeded in having himself credited as the person most responsible for the design and vision of the bridge. Only much later were the contributions of the others on the design team properly appreciated. In May 2007, the Golden Gate Bridge District issued a formal report on 70 years of stewardship of the famous bridge and decided to give Ellis major credit for the design of
6300-488: The hotel. Decades went by with no formal action. In 1920, the Michigan state highway commissioner advocated construction of a floating tunnel across the Straits. At the invitation of the state legislature, C. E. Fowler of New York City put forth a plan for a long series of causeways and bridges across the straits from Cheboygan , 17 miles (27 km) southeast of Mackinaw City, to St. Ignace, using Bois Blanc , Round , and Mackinac islands as intermediate steps. In 1923,
6400-411: The major contributors to the Golden Gate Bridge lists contractors, engineering-staff, directors and officers: Contractors Engineering staff Directors Officers On December 1, 1951, a windstorm revealed swaying and rolling instabilities of the bridge, resulting in its closure. In 1953 and 1954, the bridge was retrofitted with lateral and diagonal bracing that connected the lower chords of
6500-415: The most photographed, bridge in the world." At the time of its opening in 1937, it was both the longest and the tallest suspension bridge in the world, titles it held until 1964 and 1998 respectively. Its main span is 4,200 feet (1,280 m) and its total height is 746 feet (227 m). Before the bridge was built, the only practical short route between San Francisco and what is now Marin County
6600-585: The most powerful business interests in California, opposed the bridge as competition to its ferry fleet and filed a lawsuit against the project, leading to a mass boycott of the ferry service. In May 1924, Colonel Herbert Deakyne held the second hearing on the Bridge on behalf of the Secretary of War in a request to use federal land for construction. Deakyne, on behalf of the Secretary of War, approved
6700-411: The original paint and repainting the bridge with zinc silicate primer and vinyl topcoats. Since 1990, acrylic topcoats have been used instead for air-quality reasons. The program was completed in 1995 and it is now maintained by 38 painters who touch up the paintwork where it becomes seriously corroded. The ongoing maintenance task of painting the bridge is continuous. Most maps and signage mark
6800-513: The price was reduced to compete with the new bridge. The trip from the San Francisco Ferry Building took 27 minutes. Many wanted to build a bridge to connect San Francisco to Marin County. San Francisco was the largest American city still served primarily by ferry boats. Because it did not have a permanent link with communities around the bay, the city's growth rate was below the national average. Many experts said that
6900-519: The project. The bridge and its maintenance crew were featured in an episode of the Discovery Channel TV show Dirty Jobs on August 7, 2007. Host Mike Rowe and crew spent several days filming the episode in May 2007. MDOT also featured the bridge on the cover of the 2007 state highway map to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is
7000-422: The regular toll rate for passenger cars is $ 9.50, with FasTrak users paying a discounted toll of $ 9.25. During peak traffic hours, carpool vehicles carrying three or more people, or motorcycles may pay a discounted toll of $ 7.25 if they have FasTrak and use the designated carpool lane. Drivers must pay within 48 hours after crossing the bridge or they will be sent a toll violation invoice. The toll violation penalty
7100-415: The remaining daylight hours (until 6:00 p.m., or 9:00 p.m. during DST ). The eastern walkway is reserved for pedestrians on weekends (5:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., or 9:00 p.m. during DST), and is open exclusively to bicyclists in the evening and overnight, when it is closed to pedestrians. The western walkway is open only for bicyclists and only during the hours when they are not allowed on
7200-434: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Mighty Mac . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mighty_Mac&oldid=1118848990 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Nicknames Hidden categories: Short description
7300-516: The segment of highway that crosses the bridge instead of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). The movable median barrier between the lanes is moved several times daily to conform to traffic patterns. On weekday mornings, traffic flows mostly southbound into the city, so four of the six lanes run southbound. Conversely, on weekday afternoons, four lanes run northbound. During off-peak periods and weekends, traffic
7400-408: The shape of what is now called Mackinac Island . This interpretation of the word is debated by scholars. Trading posts at the Straits of Mackinac attracted peak populations during the summer trading season; they also developed as intertribal meeting places. As usage of the state's mineral and timber resources increased during the 19th century, the area became an important transport hub . In 1881
7500-667: The southern bridge approaches in Mackinaw City, and US 27 was removed from the bridge. It is one of only three segments of I-75 that are tolled, the others being the American half of the International Bridge near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan , and Alligator Alley in Florida . The current toll is $ 4.00 for automobiles and $ 5.00 per axle for trucks. The Mackinac Bridge Authority raised the toll in 2007 to fund
7600-568: The state legislature ordered the State Highway Department to establish ferry service across the strait. More and more people used ferries to cross the straits each year, and as they did, the movement to build a bridge increased. Chase Osborn , a former governor, wrote: Michigan is unifying itself, and a magnificent new route through Michigan to Lake Superior and the Northwest United States is developing, via
7700-526: The third-longest suspension span in the United States and 27th longest suspension span worldwide . It is also one of the world's longest bridges overall . The Algonquian peoples who lived in the straits area prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century called this region Michilimackinac , which is widely understood to mean Place of the Great Turtle. This is thought to refer to
7800-678: The three railroads that reached the Straits, the Michigan Central , Grand Rapids & Indiana , and the Detroit, Mackinac & Marquette , jointly established the Mackinac Transportation Company to operate a railroad car ferry service across the straits and connect the two peninsulas. Improved highways along the eastern shores of the Lower Peninsula brought increased automobile traffic to
7900-676: The time, the bridge was formally dedicated as the "world's longest suspension bridge between anchorages", allowing a superlative comparison to the Golden Gate Bridge , which has a longer center span between towers, and the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge , which has an anchorage in the middle. It remains the longest suspension bridge with two towers between anchorages in the Western Hemisphere . Much longer anchorage-to-anchorage spans have been built in
8000-411: The toll collector, to have their cars or motorcycles driven to the other end. There is an additional fee for this service. Bicycles and pedestrians are not permitted on the bridge. However, A program is offered to transport bicycles. Up until 2017, an exception was allowed for riders of two annual bicycle tours. A yearly exception is also made for pedestrians, see "Bridge Walk" below. Travelers across
8100-478: The transfer of land needed for the bridge structure and leading roads to the "Bridging the Golden Gate Association" and both San Francisco County and Marin County, pending further bridge plans by Strauss. Another ally was the fledgling automobile industry , which supported the development of roads and bridges to increase demand for automobiles. The bridge's name was first used when the project
8200-492: The two side trusses. This bracing stiffened the bridge deck in torsion so that it would better resist the types of twisting that had destroyed the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940. The original bridge used a concrete deck . Salt carried by fog or mist reached the rebar , causing corrosion and concrete spalling . From 1982 to 1986, the original bridge deck, in 747 sections, was systematically replaced with
8300-479: The underdeck of the span, and a center-anchorage double-suspension bridge configuration similar to the design of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. Because this would have required sinking an anchorage pier in the deepest area of the Straits, the practicality of this design may have been questionable. A concrete causeway, approximately 4,000 feet (1,219 m), extending from the northern shore,
8400-402: The walk. Thousands of people, traditionally led by the governor of Michigan, cross the five-mile (8 km) span on foot from St. Ignace to Mackinaw City. Before 1964, people walked the Bridge from Mackinaw City to St. Ignace. Prior to 2017, two lanes of the bridge would remain open to public vehicle traffic; this policy was changed in 2017 to close the entire bridge to public vehicle traffic for
8500-575: The water, were the world's tallest on a suspension bridge until 1993 when it was surpassed by the Mezcala Bridge , in Mexico. The weight of the roadway is hung from 250 pairs of vertical suspender ropes, which are attached to two main cables . The main cables pass over the two main towers and are fixed in concrete at each end. Each cable is made of 27,572 strands of wire. The total length of galvanized steel wire used to fabricate both main cables
8600-508: The years as a starting point for various commercial tours of the bridge and an unofficial gift shop. The diner was renovated in 2012 and the gift shop was then removed as a new, official gift shop has been included in the adjacent plaza. During the bridge work, the Assistant Civil Engineer of California Alfred Finnila had overseen the entire iron work of the bridge as well as half of the bridge's road work. Plaque of
8700-480: The zipper trucks, cost approximately $ 30.3 million to purchase and install. The bridge carries about 112,000 vehicles per day according to the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District. The bridge is popular with pedestrians and bicyclists, and was built with walkways on either side of the six vehicle traffic lanes. Initially, they were separated from the traffic lanes by only
8800-465: Was Morrow's personal selection, winning out over other possibilities, including the US Navy's suggestion that it be painted with black and yellow stripes to ensure visibility by passing ships. Senior engineer Charles Alton Ellis, collaborating remotely with Moisseiff, was the principal engineer of the project. Moisseiff produced the basic structural design, introducing his "deflection theory" by which
8900-402: Was abolished by the state legislature in 1947, but the same body created a new Mackinac Bridge Authority three years later in 1950. In June 1950, engineers were retained for the project. By then, it was reported that cars queuing for the ferry at Mackinaw City did not reach St. Ignace until five hours later, and the typical capacity of 460 vehicles per hour could not match the estimated 1,600 for
9000-482: Was allowed, 200,000 people crossed either on foot or on roller skates. On opening day, Mayor Angelo Rossi and other officials rode the ferry to Marin, then crossed the bridge in a motorcade past three ceremonial "barriers," the last a blockade of beauty queens who required Joseph Strauss to present the bridge to the Highway District before allowing him to pass. An official song, " There's a Silver Moon on
9100-525: Was awarded the contract for all major substructure work for $ 25.7 million (equivalent to $ 234 million in 2023 ), while the American Bridge Division of United States Steel Corporation was awarded a contract of more than $ 44 million (equivalent to $ 396 million in 2023 ) to build the steel superstructure. Construction, staged using the 1939–1941 causeway, took three and a half years (four summers, no winter construction) at
9200-641: Was by boat across a section of San Francisco Bay. A ferry service began as early as 1820, with a regularly scheduled service beginning in the 1840s for the purpose of transporting water to San Francisco. In 1867, the Sausalito Land and Ferry Company opened. In 1920, the service was taken over by the Golden Gate Ferry Company , which merged in 1929 with the ferry system of the Southern Pacific Railroad , becoming
9300-562: Was celebrated on November 1, 2007, in a ceremony hosted by the Mackinac Bridge Authority at the viewing park adjacent to the St. Ignace causeway. The bridge was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2010. The design of the Mackinac Bridge was directly influenced by the lessons from the first Tacoma Narrows Bridge , which failed in 1940 because of its instability in high winds. Three years after that disaster, Steinman had published
9400-623: Was chosen, using recent advances in bridge design and metallurgy . Strauss spent more than a decade drumming up support in Northern California. The bridge faced opposition, including litigation, from many sources. The Department of War was concerned that the bridge would interfere with ship traffic. The US Navy feared that a ship collision or sabotage to the bridge could block the entrance to one of its main harbors. Unions demanded guarantees that local workers would be favored for construction jobs. Southern Pacific Railroad , one of
9500-560: Was completed ahead of schedule and $ 1.3 million under budget (equivalent to $ 28.9 million today). The Golden Gate Bridge construction project was carried out by the McClintic-Marshall Construction Co., a subsidiary of Bethlehem Steel Corporation founded by Howard H. McClintic and Charles D. Marshall, both of Lehigh University . Strauss remained head of the project, overseeing day-to-day construction and making some groundbreaking contributions. A graduate of
9600-454: Was constructed in shallow water from 1939 to 1941. However, a unique engineering challenge was created by the tremendous forces that operate against the base of the bridge, because the lakes freeze during the winter, causing large icebergs to place enormous stress on the bridge. At that time, with funding for the project still uncertain, further work was put on hold because of the outbreak of World War II . The Mackinac Straits Bridge Authority
9700-485: Was initially discussed in 1917 by M.M. O'Shaughnessy , city engineer of San Francisco, and Strauss. The name became official with the passage of the Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District Act by the state legislature in 1923, creating a special district to design, build and finance the bridge. San Francisco and most of the counties along the North Coast of California joined the Golden Gate Bridge District, with
9800-410: Was made in a 1916 San Francisco Bulletin article by former engineering student James Wilkins. San Francisco's City Engineer estimated the cost at $ 100 million (equivalent to $ 2.8 billion in 2023), and impractical for the time. He asked bridge engineers whether it could be built for less. One who responded, Joseph Strauss, was an ambitious engineer and poet who had, for his graduate thesis , designed
9900-419: Was recovered the next day in 95 feet (29 m) of water. Two vehicles have fallen off the bridge: On September 10, 1978, a small private plane carrying United States Marine Corps Reserve officers Maj. Virgil Osborne, Capt. James Robbins, and Capt. Wayne W. Wisbrock smashed into one of the bridge's suspension cables while flying in a heavy fog. The impact tore the wings off the plane, which then plunged into
10000-418: Was unsuccessful. The United States Army Corps of Engineers and President Franklin D. Roosevelt endorsed the project but Congress never appropriated funds. Between 1936 and 1940, the Authority selected a route for the bridge based on preliminary studies. Borings were made for a detailed geological study of the route. The preliminary plans for the bridge featured a three-lane roadway, a railroad crossing on
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