Project: Memorial Bridge Replacement Project
Location: Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery, Maine
Cost: $88 million
Length: 1,200 ft
Designer: Ted Zoli; HNTB Corp.
Contractors: Walsh Group/Archer Western Contractors
Owner: New Hampshire DOT
A gussetless steel-truss bridge may sound like pie in the sky, but the first of its kind will soon be completed joining Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery, Maine. As notable for its schedule as for its lack of gussets, the new Memorial Bridge is being designed and constructed in just 18 months, including the time to demolish the old bridge. The old bridge was designed by JAL Waddell, and the design is echoed by the new bridge. Other innovations include a metalized zinc coating, using a consistent profile of three spans and cold bending of steel.