Captain Cook Bridge, Sydney
{{other uses|Captain Cook Bridge (disambiguation){{!}}Captain Cook Bridge}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2014}}{{Use Australian English|date=June 2014}}
{{Infobox bridge
| bridge_name = Captain Cook Bridge, Sydney
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| image = Captain Cook Bridge3.JPG
| image_size = 250
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| caption = Captain Cook Bridge, viewed from {{NSWcity|Sans Souci}}
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| named_for = Captain James Cook
| carries = {{nowrap|Taren Point / Rocky Point Roads}} {{bulleted list|Motor vehicles|Pedestrians|Bicycles}}
| crosses = Georges River
| locale = Southern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| owner = Transport for NSW
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| design = Box girder
| material = Precast prestressed concrete
| length = {{convert|506|m}}
| width = {{convert|27.5|m}}
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| spans = 7
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| lanes = {{bulleted list|3 northbound; 3 southbound|2 grade-separated shared footpaths and cycleways}}
| builder = John Holland Group
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| begin = {{Start-date|1962}}
| complete = {{End-date|1965}}
| cost = {{AUD}}3 million
| open = {{Start date|1965|05|29|df=y}}
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| preceded = Tom Uglys Bridge
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| replaces = Punt {{bulleted list|between Sans Souci and Taren Point: (1916–1929)}}
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| coordinates = {{Coord|-34.00794444|151.1276083|format=dms|region:AU-NSW_type:landmark|display=it}}
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The Captain Cook Bridge is a road bridge that carries Taren Point and Rocky Point Roads across the Georges River in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The precast prestressed concrete girder bridge crosses near the river mouth as it empties into Botany Bay; and links the St George and Sutherland areas of Sydney. The bridge comprises a dual carriageway with three lanes in each direction of highway grade-separated conditions; and pedestrian and bicycle traffic, via two grade-separated paths. on the eastern and western sides of the bridge.
Location and features
The Captain Cook Bridge consists of seven spans totalling {{convert|475|m}} in length, with a {{convert|506|m|adj=on}} long deck that is {{convert|27.5|m}} wide with six traffic lanes and two shared bicycle and pedestrian paths. Its foundations extend as deep as {{convert|67|m}} below water level to its sandstone base. The bridge was opened on 29 May 1965 and links Rocky Point Road at Sans Souci in the St George area to Taren Point Road at Taren Point in the Sutherland Shire. Loop walkways run under the bridge at both sides and provide access along the foreshore.
The bridge was designed by a team of engineers from the Department of Main Roads (DMR) led by Albert Fried. The bridge went out to tender and an alternative design proposed by John holland designed by Brian Barmby was accepted. The DMR's Resident Engineer for the construction was Ray Wedgwood, who was later the Chief Bridge Engineer for the Roads and Traffic Authority. The main contractor was John Holland Group.{{cite web|url=http://fabsydneyflashbacks.blogspot.com/2015/05/milestone-opening-of-captain-cook.html|title=The Opening of the Captain Cook Bridge (1965)|publisher=Sydney Flashbacks|access-date=4 January 2020}}8
The bridge is the easternmost of the seven major crossings of Georges River. The others are Tom Uglys Bridge, which opened in 1929, Alfords Point Bridge (1973, duplicated 2008), M5 Milperra bridge (1992), Milperra Bridge (replacement bridge 1966), Liverpool Bridge (replacement bridge 1958), and M5 Casula bridge (1985, widened 1988).
The Captain Cook Bridge is the only section of the planned F6 Freeway that has been built in the Sydney metropolitan area, with the other built sections being between {{NSWcity|Waterfall}} and Bulli Tops and further south between {{NSWcity|Gwynneville}} and {{NSWcity|Yallah}}. On the southern approach the two carriageways of the approach road diverge to allow for construction of a future interchange to also carry freeway traffic to and from the bridge.
The speed limit on the bridge and the 1 km (0.62 miles) of freeway on the southern approach is {{convert|80|km/h}}.
The bridge was designed to have the capacity to carry 30,000 vehicles on a weekday, but in 2015 the bridge was estimated to be carrying 30,600 vehicles per weekday.{{cite web|url=http://www.theleader.com.au/story/3127450/captain-cook-bridge-anniversary-a-reminder-of-unfinished-work/|title=Captain Cook Bridge anniversary a reminder of unfinished work|date=5 June 2015|access-date=13 June 2015|work=St George & Sutherland Shire Leader|first=Murray|last=Trembath}}
History
A ferry service ran between Sans Souci and Taren Point from 1911. From April 1916 a vehicular punt ran between the two points,{{Cite news|title=George's River Ferry|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|url= http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15641542|date=4 March 1916|access-date=13 September 2010}} and continued to do so even after the opening of the Tom Uglys Bridge in 1929.
The Captain Cook Bridge is named in honour of Captain James Cook, a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the Royal Navy, who landed at nearby Kurnell on 29 April 1770, during his first voyage of discovery aboard the Endeavour.{{Cite web|publisher=Roads & Traffic Authority|access-date=13 September 2010|url=http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/index.cgi?action=heritage.show&id=4301061|title=Captain Cook Bridge (1965), southern approach|work=Heritage and conservation register|date=18 November 2005}}
A big part of commissioning construction of the Captain Cook Bridge in 1962 was that the nearby three-laned Tom Ugly's Bridge was carrying more traffic than any three lanes of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and the Taren Point punt was at full capacity carrying 1000 cars daily.
Gallery
CaptainCookBridge.png|Captain Cook Bridge, as viewed from Blakehurst
Captain Cook Bridge 01.JPG|Captain Cook Bridge, as viewed from Taren Point Road
GeorgesRiverbridges1000.png|Captain Cook Bridge in the foreground, and Tom Uglys Bridge behind
Captain_Cook_Bridge_from_Taren_Point.jpg|Captain Cook Bridge taken from Taren Point end at night
See also
{{stack|{{Portal|Transport|Engineering|New South Wales|Australian roads}}}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{cite web|url=http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/b2b/publications/boating-safety-plan-nov-12.pdf|type=PDF|title=Boating Safety Plan (Botany Bay, Georges River, Woronora River, Cooks River)|date=November 2012|work=Roads & Maritime Services|publisher=Office of Boating Safety and Maritime Affairs, Policy and Regulation Division, Transport for NSW|access-date=14 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140623200539/http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/b2b/publications/boating-safety-plan-nov-12.pdf|archive-date=23 June 2014|url-status=dead}}
{{Bridges in Sydney |state=autocollapse}}
{{Road infrastructure in Sydney}}
Category:Bridges completed in 1965
Category:Concrete bridges in Australia
Category:Road bridges in New South Wales