Leverett Circle Connector Bridge

Leverett Circle Connector
Leverett Circle Connector
Coordinates	42°22′09″N 71°03′53″W / 42.36909°N 71.06459°WCoordinates: 42°22′09″N 71°03′53″W / 42.36909°N 71.06459°W
Carries	highway access ramp
Crosses	Charles River
Locale	Boston, Massachusetts to Somerville, Massachusetts
Characteristics
Design	steel box girder bridge
Total length	1.7 miles (2.7 km)
History
Opened	October 7, 1999
Location

The Leverett Circle Connector Bridge is a highway bridge over the Charles River, carrying two lanes each of northbound and southbound traffic. It connects to Interstate 93 in Somerville, Massachusetts (the "Northern Expressway") at the north end (exit 18, formerly 26 from I-93 South) and splits at the south end, providing direct access to both Storrow Drive and Leverett Circle in Boston. Going northbound, there is also a fork which provides access to the City Square Tunnel under Charlestown to proceed on U.S. 1 North via the Tobin Bridge.

The span was built in conjunction with the more dramatic Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge as part of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, widely known as the Big Dig. During construction, the Leverett Circle Connector Bridge was sometimes called "Baby Bridge".^[2] The bridge opened for traffic on October 7, 1999,^[3] at a cost of $22.27 million.^[4]

Also known as the Storrow Drive Connector, it is the largest steel box girder bridge in the United States. It was the winner of a July 2001 National Steel Bridge Alliance (NSBA) "prize bridge" Award.^[5] Its weaving design^{[further explanation needed]} was determined by the other major structures involved in the Big Dig but unlike other parts of the project, it was finished eight days ahead of schedule.^[4]

Major intersections[]

The entire route is in Boston, Suffolk County. All exits are unnumbered.

Location	mi^[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
West End	0.0	0.0	Route 28 north (O'Brien Highway) – Leverett Circle, North Station	At-grade intersection; North Station access via Nashua Street
West End	0.2	0.32	Route 28 south / Route 3 north (Storrow Drive)	Southbound exit and northbound entrance; no commercial vehicles
Charles River	0.4– 0.5	0.64– 0.80	Bridge
Charlestown	0.7	1.1	US 1 north (Tobin Bridge) – Revere	Loop ramp via City Square Tunnel
Charlestown	1.7	2.7	I-93 north – Concord, NH	Exit 18 on I-93; Somerville city line
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Electronic toll collection Incomplete access

Gallery[]

Leverett Circle as seen behind North Station during Big Dig construction.
Part of the rebuilt connector bridge at right.

References[]

^ ^a ^b Google (June 2, 2019). "Leverett Circle Connector" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
^ Howe, Peter J. (August 10, 1998). "Masterpiece or monster". Boston Globe. p. C3.
^ Leonard P Zakim-Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge (I-93 and US 1)
^ ^a ^b "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2008-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Archived copy". www.aisc.org. Archived from the original on 6 May 2003. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[googlemaps-1] Google (June 2, 2019). "Leverett Circle Connector" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved June 2, 2019.

[2] Howe, Peter J. (August 10, 1998). "Masterpiece or monster". Boston Globe. p. C3.

[3] Leonard P Zakim-Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge (I-93 and US 1)

[pike-4] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2008-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[5] "Archived copy". www.aisc.org. Archived from the original on 6 May 2003. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

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