Melancong ke New York 8: Manhattan Bridge

Sambung lagi sesi Melancong ke New York.

Seterusnya Manhattan Bridge. Nama Manhattan ni sedap, tak tau apa sebab. Engineers and architects will appreciate this bridge tetapi anda pun boleh juga layan.

The Manhattan Bridge is a suspension bridge that crosses the East River in New York City, connecting Lower Manhattan (at Canal Street) with Brooklyn (at Flatbush Avenue Extension). It was the last of the three suspension bridges built across the lower East River, following the Brooklyn and the Williamsburg bridges.

Spesifikasi:

• Main span: 1,470 ft (448 m)
• Length of suspension cables: 3,224 ft (983 m)
• Total length: 6,855 ft (2,089 m)

Satu benda yang unik tentang jambatan ini ialah adanya pintu gerbang di belah Manhattan. New Yorkers zaman dulu memang obses nak jadikan New York macam Eropah, the grandeur. Jadi, pintu gerbang tu is a neccessity.

In 1910, a year after the bridge opened, the architectural firm Carrère and Hastings drew up preliminary plans for an elaborate grand entry to the bridge on the Manhattan side, as part of the "City Beautiful" movement. Construction began that year, and plans were finalized in 1912. The arch and colonnade were completed in 1915.

Selain dari kenderaan biasa, jambatan ini juga bawa subway merentasinya. Perhatikan lower deck jambatan tu - untuk subway. Ada macam-macam masalah dengan muatan sebegini but eventually, wise engineering wins.

Muatan bergerak (kenderaan) dengan muatan mati (bangunan) mempunyai impak yang berlainan dan masalah yang berkaitan perlu diselesaikan dengan caranya yang tersendiri. Student Civil Engineering tahap degree faham le ni.

Ada specialist dalam pembinaan jambatan. Mereka dikenali sebagai bridge engineer. Selain dari teknikaliti; kecantikan jambatan juga diambil kira kerana ia merupakan struktur yang gargantuan. Jika gargantuan tetapi buruk rupanya - menyakitkan mata. Maka arkitek pun memainkan peranan yang penting - selalunya lebih penting dari engineer.

Menganga tengok (kalau faham implikasi pembinaan jambatan ini). Yang tak faham buat donno je.

Suspension bridge bermaksud jambatan ini seolah-olah digantung. Digantung? Ya, digantung oleh towers yang terpasak ke bumi.

Berapa banyak besi yang digunakan tu? Tetapi awas - karat adalah musuh utama besi! Kalau tak dijaga, jambatan boleh runtuh kerana karat.

Massive!

Dan cantik!

Manhattan Bridge ni popular. Sesiapa yang kaki movie tu, please take note on these:

1984:The bridge played a large role in the Steve Martin romantic comedy film The Lonely Guy, in which it is a popular spot for lonely guys to commit suicide, and the meeting place for Martin and Judith Ivey.

1984: The bridge is featured prominently in director Sergio Leone's gangster epic Once Upon a Time in America.

1994: In The Cowboy Way, the two main cowboy characters chase a B train over the bridge to rescue a friend in grave danger.

1995: The villain Two-Face uses the bridge's Brooklyn anchorage for his hideout in the film Batman Forever.

1999: In Aftershock: Earthquake in New York, the Manhattan Bridge is one of many NYC landmarks to be destroyed by the earthquake that devastates Manhattan.

2005: The bridge is featured prominently in Peter Jackson's remake of King Kong.

2007: The film I Am Legend shows the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges with their center spans destroyed. A flashback reveals they were hit by missiles to stop the exodus from a quarantined Manhattan.

2009: In the remake of the film The Taking of Pelham 123, the final showdown between Ryder and Walter Garber takes place on the south pedestrian deck of the Manhattan Bridge.