mmarshall

Here's an interesting video. I myself have always found the enormous Chesapeake Bay Bridge, which connects U.S. Highway 50 in the suburbs of Annapolis with Kent Island, MD, to be one of the most scenic and interesting spots to drive in the Mid-Atlantic region....perhaps second only to Skyline Drive in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I loved every time I've crossed it, particularly in nice weather with good visibility forward and down from its huge hight....as a former pilot, I have also flown over it several times. Apparently, though, some people can't cope with the bridge's height, its older design with no emergency pull-offs, and mental thoughts/obsessions of collapses, earthquakes, winds, getting blown off, etc.... (and, in fact, the State Police and Maryland DOT do shut the bridge down occasionally during strong crosswinds). But most of the dangers, most of the time, under most conditions, are more in people's minds than anything else....especially with a reasonably competent driver.

One thing interesting, though (and I did not know about these services until I watched the video and decided to post it)...apparanty there are individuals and services who, for a reasonable fee, will drive nervous people across the bridge, in their cars, for them. Not surprising, perhaps, in this day of Uber rides and delivery of so many things right to your front door. I'd consider becoming one of these drivers myself, if the bridge was closer to my home (as a dedicated no-alcohol teetotaler, I used to be a Designated Driver at my friend's parties and cookouts). I actually live about 60-70 miles west of it, though (depending on the route)...too far, IMO, for even a part-time commute, especially in D.C.-area traffic, arguably the second-heaviest in the country behind Southern California.


Here's a video actually crossing the bridge itself, in nice weather, both eastbound and westbound. I think the latter part of the westbound crossing is actually the most impressive part...you get a better view ahead coming down into the long right turn after the tallest superstructure.








....and the former Annual Walk

SW17LS

I know a lot of people who are terrified of the bridge. I have a friend who's sister can't drive across it and uses those services. When I was a teenager I had a friend who we would take with us to Ocean City in the summer and he used to put his head between his legs when we crossed it.

I don't get it, I love the bay bridge. In fact, the other week a group of us from work went to the Jetty in Kent Narrows for the afternoon, we do that from time to time. I usually drive, but this time one of the other people drove and I got to ride across the bay bridge as a passenger for the first time in probably 20 years. I thoroughly enjoyed being able to look at all the sights and all without having to worry about driving.

I will say, I've come across that bridge in some pretty scary storms, and especially in a high profile vehicle (like an SUV or a minivan) it can be a little sketchy!

mmarshall

The local media, here, tends to hype the few times people have been hurt or killed on the bridge....but there are probably a lot more crashes per mile on the enormously overcrowded D.C. Beltway itself (and I-66 in Virginia) than on the bridge itself. And, unlike the Beltway or I-66, authorities in Maryland shut the bridge down when conditions get genuinely risky, like 50 MPH crosswinds or more.

SW17LS

Oh, by a WIDE margin there would be more traffic accidents and fatalities on the beltway than the bridge.

I think people's fear comes from the lack of any shoulder, it can be narrow when there are trucks on it and all. Weather CAN be scary there, and change abruptly. Like I added to the above after you quoted it I have been across that bridge in some pretty scary storms, and in a high profile vehicle (or any vehicle, really) it can be pretty sketchy.

Weather also tends to build up on the western side of the bay, so that it can look very ominous behind you or in front of you which adds to stress, you can see that in the video about the crossing service at the end, when the woman hugs him and gets back in her blue car, the sky behind her is very dark.

Quite frankly, very few times have I ever been scared behind the wheel of a car, so maybe thats why I don't get it. One of the very few times was on a night trip to WV when I was a kid (17 maybe) in my dad's RWD 98 LS400 when up in the mountains on I-64 there was an unexpected and sudden blizzard...It went from dry to 7-8 inches of snow in about 4 miles. That car was terrible in the snow and I was obviously really young...

LS430FL

Reminds me of the 7 mile bridge to the FL keys! I do know people that get nervous being on a bridge for such. large amount of time but loud music with eyes closed usually works.

SW17LS

Its not unlike the 7 mile bridge, I agree.

mmarshall

Agreed.....winter in the mountains can get dicey. I was a good driver by teen standards, but some things I still had to learn by experience. When I was on my second solo long-trip to Ohio, in my old RWD 1964 Plymouth Barracuda (which didn't even have windshield washers) it was raining heavily when I left D.C. in the dark before dawn, but, north of Hancock on I-70, the road steadily climbs the side of Town Hill, for a number of miles, on the way north to Breezewood, PA. Conditions rapidly deteriorated into hard-packed snow on the road (apparently no road-treatments yet). No VSC, TC, or ABS in those days, of course....you did everything yourself with the wheel, gas, and brake. That was truly scary, on the side of that mountain, and the occasionally-fishtailing back end of the car, at one point, did start to go out on me, into a spin, towards the guard rail....with a several hundred feet drop-off to the valley below. I instinctively steered in the opposite direction into the skid, like we were taught in driving-class, with the old non-power recirculating-ball unit. That, and a very quick prayer (to this day, I am no athiest), righted things and kept me from going into the rail...or maybe over it. I slowed down even further (good insurance) and crept north at around 25-30 MPH to Hancock, down a couple more steep hills (by Interstate standards), with the wheels locking up every time I touched the brake pedal even at those low speeds. I was dog-tired and stressed-out at Hancock......and had some coffee and a nice breakfast at the Howard Johnson's there (remember them?) to rest and get my strength back. The rest of the trip across the mountains to Ohio was relatively uneventful, except trying to keep the windshield clean from salt/road spray without windshield washers...the PA Turnpike had been treated and was wet, but with no rain to help keep things clean. I had to come up with some adaptive practices for that. Dicey, but it worked. Washers, BTW, were not required on new American-market cars until after the 1966 safety-legislation that Ralph Nader helped get passed.

SW17LS

Yeah that stretch of road can get really dicey in the winter, I-68 past there does also. I came thorough there the other day, don't come that way often. Lots of hills, mountains, up and down, etc. Did that trip once years ago in my cousins FWD Jeep Patriot which was also pretty scary...

Toys4RJill

I was recently in this area. I know someone who lives in Virginia Beach, I don't know if I was on this bridge but maybe. It is a nice area. My husband was fasicnated with the air craft carriers in port in Norfolk.

mmarshall

Don't confuse the Chesapeake Bridge/Tunnel from Norfolk to Virginia's Lower Eastern Shore with the Bay Bridge at Annapolis that I posted. The Bridge/Tunnel down at Norfolk is much longer (over 20 miles) but also very low, and includes a couple of underwater tunnel-sections, instead of a high bridge, for ships to pass over. IMO it is not as impressive as crossing the 200' high Bay Bridge at Annapolis.

Fizzboy7

Interesting topic, thanks for sharing.

A couple of points:

Inside Edition will make any story sound more dramatic than it really is (hype/panic news).
Millions of people cross that bridge without any fear or problem. Those people were not mentioned.
Is the guy in the dirty, green BMW insured to be transporting people and driving other people's cars? Wonder what the lawsuit potential is for accidents.
The most dangerous thing in the first video is the careless reporter NOT wearing his seatbelt. One crash and he's flying out a window or over the side. Perhaps he needs to be shown the recent limo crash story and it's outcome.

There are two bridges in SoCal that get me thinking a little extra when crossing them: Vincent Thomas Bridge in Long Beach and the Coronado Bridge in San Diego. The first is steep, tall, and clogged with container trucks. The second is tall and looooong.

Here in L.A., the one area that sometimes gets me freaked in crawling traffic is the 5-14-210 Freeway interchange in Sylmar that has collapsed two times in two different earthquakes. Part of my daily commute.





Apparently, God had a thing for Hondas that day...

mmarshall

I learned something from it, too.....I did not know that there was a regular ferry-service like that, for nervous people who wanted or need it, but it would make sense, given the potential demand for it. Me, though, I love driving...I never got queasy on bridges, except maybe for some of the old bridges across the Ohio River from West Virginia that were old and risky.......the one at Point Pleasant, for example, that carried U.S. 35 across to Gallipolis, OH collapsed some years ago and killed several people. The Newell Toll Bridge, an old truss-bridge up the river at Chester, WV, which crosses the same river to East Liverpool, OH on the old U.S. 30 detour, is older than dirt, and I was a little apprehensive on it when I did my first solo long trip to Ohio the day after I graduated from high school. It has held, though, over the years, and not collapsed. I took the back roads on that first long trip because I liked the scenery and the driving experience over the older mountain roads...you miss a lot of that on the Interstates. That three-mile 10% grade-descent, on U.S. 40, down the famous Uniontown Hill (Chestnut Ridge) in Pennsylvania was a killer, though...when the sign says caution, it MEANS caution. That hill is famous....many decades ago, the early auto companies used to test engines, transmissions, radiators/cooling systems, and brakes on that hill...they would sometimes drive down from Michigan to do so. A Hotel and golf course was built on the road at the summit, for well-heeled people like Henry Ford, who stayed there and enjoyed the view from the top.

Probably so, since he owns the business. I can't imagine not having at least some kind of liability coverage if you run a business like that. A minimum amount of insurance coverage is probably a requirement in most states. Of course, insurance or no insurance, the chances of an accident are minimized by careful and sensible driving......and one is only going some four to five miles each way.


Agreed.....if possible, belts should be worn whenever a vehicle is in motion. In Maryland, one can be ticketed for not doing so....same in my home state of Virginia. Though it is not an excuse, perhaps (?) it would have been difficult for the reporter to do the story, and hold the mike, interview, record, etc..... if he had been belted to the back of he seat.

True, earthquakes and tremors are a constant possibility almost anywhere in Southern or coastal California, but the engineers know that and design the bridges accordingly, with probably more safety features than in bridges here back East. There is no such thing, of course, as a totally earthquake-proof bridge, but California has very strict building codes for its infrastructure.

Back then, of course, Hondas were in great demand....many people payed over list for them (sometimes well over list) and put up with arrogant dealerships just to get one.

Johnhav430

My favorite bridge is the GW, I simply like the architecture. I also like the Verrazano.

What I have been noticing lately, is there are many vehicles who seem to be afraid of the barriers, and are not centered in their lane. The worst was this woman driving a Mercedes, and the dotted line went through the center of her hood. My sneaking suspicion is not everybody today, who is say 30 or 40 years old, has been driving since 12 or 14 like you and me. For all we know, they didn't even drive until a few years ago, despite being 40. That's my guess. (I take a span to work daily)

COOLIS

The media sensationalizes things like this. I remember after 9/11, many news outlets were reporting that California bridges were terrorist targets. I think I even remember the Saint Thomas bridge having random police searches before crossing it.

I was exposed to doomsday thinking by my grandmother early on, so I always have thoughts about things going awry, but I don't let that fear stop me from driving over a bridge, flying, etc. Before my grandmother passed, I basically got a final goodbye from her anytime I flew, as she always thought my plane would go down. Her fear was almost comical.

SW17LS

True, but there are a lot of people who do have issues crossing that bridge.

He is, its a legit business.