Copper River Highway

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This article is about Alaska Route 10 between Cordova and the Miles Glacier. For other segments of the route, see Alaska Route 10.
Alaska 10 shield.svgForest Route 32.svg
Copper River Highway
Map of the Copper River Highway
Route information
Maintained by AkDOT&PF and the NFS
Length49.5 mi[1] (79.7 km)
Major junctions
South end2nd Street in Cordova
North endThe Million Dollar Bridge over the Miles Glacier
Highway system

The Copper River Highway extends 49.5 miles (79.7 km) from Cordova along the old railbed of the Copper River and Northwestern Railway. Construction began in 1945, and was originally intended to link Cordova with the state highway system at Chitina. The Million Dollar Bridge, which had carried trains until the CR&NW shut down, was converted for highway use. It is one of two discontinuous segments of Alaska Route 10.

The road extended only slightly beyond the bridge when the Good Friday earthquake of 1964 halted construction and severely damaged the Million Dollar Bridge, collapsing the north span. Temporary repairs were made, and the bridge continued to be used. Permanent repairs were not completed until 2005.

The first 12 miles (19 km) of the highway is paved; the rest is gravel. A primitive four-wheel-drive road continues for 10 miles (16 km) beyond the end of the highway to the Allen River.

The highway past mile 36 has been de facto abandoned since 2011 due to erosion of the approach to Bridge 339.[2]

Route description[]

The Copper River Highway begins at the Alaska Marine Highway ferry terminal in Cordova. From there, the highway proceeds through central Cordova, intersecting several small roads and passing residential and commercial buildings.[3] The road exits Cordova, and passes the large , proceeding to the Merle K. (Mudhole) Smith Airport.[3] The highway proceeds through Chugach National Forest, and passes over the Copper River, and several small sloughs.[3] The roadway continues north, passing through several miles of Chugach National Forest, before reaching the Million Dollar Bridge, the highway's northern terminus.[3]

Major junctions[]

The entire route is in Valdez-Cordova Borough.

Locationmi[4]kmDestinationsNotes
Cordova0.0000.000 Alaska Marine Highway Terminal - CordovaWestern terminus
0.4490.723Railroad Avenue
0.8491.366Council Avenue
1.0951.7622nd Street
1.3762.214Point Whitshed Road
1.7932.886Le Fevre Street
4.8317.7755 Mile Cutoff
​5.3078.541
​13.69622.042Sheridan Glacier Road
​22.28435.863Alaganik Slough Bridge
​49.45879.595Million Dollar BridgeEastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References[]

Route map:

( • help)
KML is from Wikidata
  1. ^ Staff. "The Copper River Highway". The Milepost. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved April 23, 2012.
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Google (May 31, 2012). "Overview Map of Copper River Highway" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
  4. ^ Birkholz, Ethan (2010). Annual Traffic Volume Report (PDF) (Report) (2008-2009-2010 ed.). Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities. Route Number 210000. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2014. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
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