Mount Hope Bridge

The Mount Hope Bridge is the two-lane suspension bridge that carries Route 114 across Mount Hope Bay between Bristol and Portsmouth, Rhode Island. It opened on October 24, 1929, is 6,130 feet long with a 1,200-foot main span and 285-foot towers, and has been toll-free since May 1, 1998. It is owned and run by the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority (RITBA) and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Numbers

RITBA, which owns and maintains the bridge, gives these figures:

• Total length: 6,130 feet (1,868 metres)
• Main span: 1,200 feet (366 metres)
• Towers: 285 feet (87 metres) tall
• Roadway: 135 feet (41 metres) above high water
• Lanes: two, carrying Route 114
• Traffic: about 15,000 vehicles a day

RITBA says it spans Mount Hope Bay at one of the narrowest gaps in Narragansett Bay. Until the Newport Bridge was built, it was the longest suspension bridge in New England, a title it held for 40 years.

A Bridge Built Just Before the Crash

The bridge was designed and owned by a private company, the Mount Hope Bridge Company. Construction began on December 1, 1927, and four months before it was due to open, serious structural problems were found, forcing the contractor to take apart and rebuild portions of the bridge. RITBA puts the total cost, including bonds, debentures and stock, at $4.2 million. The bridge opened on October 24, 1929. Five days later the stock market crashed. By 1931 the bridge company was bankrupt, and Rudolf F. Haffenreffer, a brewery owner, bought the bridge in receivership. The State of Rhode Island bought it in 1954, and RITBA, which succeeded the Mount Hope Bridge Authority in 1964, runs it today.

Why It Is Green

RITBA credits the bridge with introducing colour to bridge design. At a time when big bridges were painted black or grey, the Mount Hope Bridge was painted green to blend with the landscape, and it was lit at night to show off its lines. Its towers have a cross-braced design with a Gothic arch above the roadway. In 1929 the American Institute of Steel Construction gave it its Artistic Bridge Award as the most beautiful long-span bridge built that year, praising its "sheer grace." It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 31, 1976. In 2017 RITBA raised an American flag on the bridge for the first time since it opened.

Is There a Toll?

No. RITBA ended toll collection on May 1, 1998; tolls from the Newport Pell Bridge now help pay for the Mount Hope Bridge and RITBA's other bridges. The first toll in 1929 was 60 cents for a one-way crossing, double what it was when tolls were removed. The toll booths on the Bristol side came down in 1999; the guardhouse on the far side remains.

Seeing the Bridge

The bridge's Bristol end is south of the town centre: the Herreshoff Marine Museum places itself half a mile south of the centre of Bristol and 1.5 miles north of the bridge on Hope Street (Route 114). RITBA describes it as a two-lane bridge and, unlike the Sakonnet River Bridge, mentions no bike or pedestrian path on it.

Driving Over It

Route 114 crosses the bridge, so if you are coming to Colt State Park from Newport or Aquidneck Island, you will likely drive over it and continue north on Route 114 (Hope Street) through Bristol to the park. Linden Place's directions describe the same route: over the bridge, stay left to follow Route 114 north. See the Colt parking guide.

More in Bristol

• Herreshoff Marine Museum, 1.5 miles north of the bridge
• Blithewold, on Ferry Road (Route 114)
• Linden Place, on Hope Street in town
• Things to do in Bristol