Conversion of the 1.25 Mile Long Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge into a Multi-Use State Park Using the Public-Private Partnership Process

The Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge is a 19th Century engineering marvel listed on the National Historic Register and currently under consideration by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) for National Landmark status. The first cornerstone was laid in 1873, and when it was completed in 1888, five years after the Brooklyn Bridge, it was touted as the longest bridge in the world (same time frame as Tay and Forth bridges in Scotland). As the first bridge spanning the Hudson River between Albany and New York City, it had an enormous impact on the transportation of freight in the Northeast, and played a key role in shaping today's transportation network. Railroad traffic over the bridge increased dramatically in the early 20th century, and by World War II train volumes exceeded 3500 cars/day. This rapid growth resulted in the need for immense improvements to the original bridge to accommodate longer and heavier trains. The original main span structure consisted of only the north and south trusses, but in 1906, a center truss was woven into the structure to increase capacity. A second strengthening project was undertaken in 1918 when the main span deck system was replaced.