Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
May 14, 1920 The Michigan Avenue Bridge, which spans the main stem of the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, was officially opened. This structure is widely believed to have been the first double-deck bridge built with roadway on both levels – the upper level for automobiles, the lower level for heavy commercial vehicles. In addition, the bridge... Continue Reading →
May 3, 2017 At 3:30 p.m., a pivotal moment in the construction of the Mӕlefjell Tunnel between the municipalities of Seljord and Hjartdal in southeastern Norway took place when both halves of the structure were joined together. This breakthrough occurred four years after the construction company NCC had begun building the road tunnel. “I’ve been... Continue Reading →
April 7, 2009 The deck for Stonecutters Bridge in the New Territories region of Hong Kong was formally completed. This bridge carries the motorway designated as Route 8 across the Rambler Channel and serves as a link between Nam Won Kok, a cape in the southeast corner of Tsing Yi Island, and Stonecutters Island. (Stonecutters... Continue Reading →
March 26, 2006 The Tunnel Tiergarten Spreebogen in the central area of Berlin was opened to vehicular traffic. This structure is part of the federal highway designated as the Bundesstraße 96, and it serves as a link between Berlin Hauptbahnhof, the main railway station in Germany’s capital city; and the locality (neighborhood) of Tiergarten in the... Continue Reading →
March 16, 1957 In the state of Western Australia (WA), plans for a major transportation project in the city of Perth moved further towards full-fledged reality. John Digby Leach, who served as WA’s commissioner of main roads from 1953 to 1966, became the catalyst for this milestone when he signed a contract for building a... Continue Reading →
March 15, 2014 The second phase of the construction of the Southern Expressway (formally designated as E01) in Sri Lanka was officially completed with the opening of that segment to the public. This section of the Southern Expressway connects the major cities of Galle and Matara on Sri Lanka’s southern coast. Construction on the Southern... Continue Reading →
March 11, 1967 The Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine Bridge-Tunnel in Canada was officially opened. This Quebec-based structure, which runs both over and beneath the St. Lawrence River and carries the Autoroute 25 expressway, links the Island of Montreal with the south shore of that river at the city of Longueuil. This bridge-tunnel was named in honor of noted... Continue Reading →
February 15, 2017 An expressway was dedicated on the Kapiti Coast on New Zealand’s North Island. The grand opening of this four-lane route took place “[w]ith the smell of new road seal lingering in the air,” reported the New Zealand Herald. The Kapiti Expressway covers 11 miles (18 kilometers) from Mackays Crossing, which is located... Continue Reading →
On April 23, 1960, a new portion of Interstate 20 (I-20) in the northern region of Louisiana was officially opened to traffic. The portion of that east-west route being inaugurated on that Saturday was a 9.7-mile (15.6-kilometer) segment between the city of Ruston and village of Choudrant. This segment was the longest stretch of Louisiana’s... Continue Reading →
On October 16, 1958, a dedication ceremony was held for the first part of Interstate 94 (I-94) in central North Dakota. This segment, covering 39 miles (62.8 kilometers) between the cities of Valley City and Jamestown in the eastern region of North Dakota, was also the first portion of the Interstate Highway System to be... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 