Carlton Lift Bridge - Bath, ME
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NorStar
N 43° 54.676 W 069° 48.806
19T E 434686 N 4862339
The bridge has two decks, one for automobiles and one for trains - the railroad portion is the only one actively used.
Waymark Code: WMPV8C
Location: Maine, United States
Date Posted: 10/22/2015
Views: 1
In Bath, across the Kennebec River, is the Carlton Lift Bridge.
The bridge is by downtown Bath. It stands next to the new highway bridge that carries U.S. Route 1. The best view is going northbound so that you are on the nearside (driver - keep your eyes on the road!). The best place to park and see it is from the railroad depot/tourist information center. Access is off Vine Street.
The bridge is a steel truss design with two decks and two towers in the center. The lower deck has a single railroad track. The upper deck has a road with the west end ramp missing. The bridge length is listed as 3093 ft, and the longest span is 330 ft. The deck width is 24 ft.
Bridgehunter.com has a page for this bridge. The bridge was built in 1927. In 1976, the bridge was rehabilitated. The upper deck with the road was closed to traffic in 2000 when the bypass bridge was built.
There is a historical sign about both bridges east of the tourist information center. The sign stated that at the time this bridge was built, it was resting on the deepest pneumatic pier in the world at 118.7 ft below sea level at mean tide.
The Maine Eastern Railroad currently uses the bridge.
Source:
Bridgehunter: MERR/Carlton Lift Bridge
(
visit link)