Lehigh Valley Transit Company - Eighth Street Bridge

Eighth Street Bridge

In 1911, LVT wanted to reach the other side of Little Lehigh Creek in order to carry its interurban and trolley cars from center Allentown to the south side. It organized the Allentown Bridge Company and began construction. The resulting seventeen arch concrete span cost over of $500,000 and required 29,500 cubic yards (22,600 m3) of concrete and 1.1 million pounds of metal reinforcing rods. When opened for traffic on November 17, 1913, it was the longest and highest concrete bridge in the world. It operated as a toll bridge from its November 17, 1913 opening until the 1950s, at which time the toll was five cents for an automobile. The Liberty Bell Limiteds crossed the bridge to begin their run to Philadelphia and also to reach the Fairview car barn to the west of eighth street. Concrete poles that once supported the trolley wire are still standing on the bridge to this day. The bridge is now called the Albertus L. Meyers Bridge.