Philip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge

Phillip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge
Bridge during the President's Day Storm of 2003.
Coordinates40°36′55″N 75°22′43″W / 40.6153°N 75.3787°W / 40.6153; -75.3787
Carries4 lanes of New Street (SR3011), 2 sidewalks
CrossesLehigh River
LocaleBethlehem (Center City) to South Side Bethlehem
Official namePhillip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge
Other name(s)Fahy Bridge
New Street Bridge
Characteristics
DesignSteel rigid frame bridge[1]
Total length1,466 feet (447 m)[1]
Width55.1 feet (16.8 m) (deck width)[1]
History
Opened1972 (current structure)
Location
Map

The Philip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge is a bridge that crosses the Lehigh River in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. It is locally known as The Fahy Bridge, The Fahy, or The New Street Bridge. It carries New Street in the city of Bethlehem (unsigned SR 3011) across the river.

Naming

Police officer Philip J. Fahy for whom the bridge was named

On August 29, 1969, Officer Phillip Fahy and his partner Officer Merle Getz were on patrol when they attempted to stop a vehicle driven by a Bebley Wells. After pursuing the vehicle to an area off of the Williams St. Ext. Wells exited his vehicle and immediately fired a shotgun at Officer Fahy, mortally wounding him. Officer Getz was able to return fire, striking Wells several times.

Wells was later tried and convicted for the murder of Officer Fahy and died serving a life term for first degree murder in the Pennsylvania State Prison system in 2004. The bridge was named the Phillip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge in Officer Fahy's honor.

History

There have been several bridges at this location since the late 19th century. The New Street Bridge Company owned one previous bridge; in 1915, it charged a toll of one cent for pedestrians, two cents for motorcycles, between five and fifteen cents for passenger cars, depending on the size and number of seats, and one-half cent per passenger carried over the bridge via streetcar.[2] The bridge was replaced in 1970 with the current structure.[3]

In 2011, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation closed the sidewalk on the bridge following a bridge inspection that discovered structural deterioration in the steel- supported sidewalk and the concrete sidewalk itself.[4]

In 2016, a rehabilitation project was undertaken on the bridge.[5]

In 2024, after winning the 160th meeting of The Rivalry, Lehigh students tore down the goal posts at Goodman Stadium and marched them over 4 miles and over South Mountain to throw them into the Lehigh River at Fahy bridge.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Lehigh River New Street Bridge".
  2. ^ Wilcox, Delos (1918). Report on the Transit Problems of Bethlehem, Pa., and Vicinity: With Recommendations for their Solution. Times publishing Company.
  3. ^ "The four bridges of South Bethlehem | Bethlehem Press". Archived from the original on 2018-11-01.
  4. ^ "Fahy Bridge sidewalk in Bethlehem shuttered because of deteriorating support steel". 27 August 2011.
  5. ^ "Work on Bethlehem's Fahy Bridge to begin next month".
  6. ^ Blake, Corky. "Lehigh football plows through rival Lafayette for Patriot League title in No. 160". The Express-Times. Retrieved 25 November 2024.

40°36′55″N 75°22′43″W / 40.6153°N 75.3787°W / 40.6153; -75.3787