As Seattle's Evergreen Point Floating Bridge crosses east over Lake Washington it passes upscale waterfront property, marinas, parks, and the exclusive Broadmoor neighborhood, arriving 7578 feet later in Bellevue, not far from the lakefront compound where Bill Gates lives. Where the bridge spans the water near the Washington Park Arboretum and the Museum of History and Industry is a "ramp-to-nowhere," an unused on-ramp that begins in mid-air and stretches over the water to the eastbound lane of the bridge, never having been connected to the road on the mainland.
Swimmers leap off the rail in the summer; they use artificial rock-climbing holds (like those found in a climbing gym) bolted to one of the structure's pylons to climb back up to the road deck after a jump.
The underside of the ramp forms parallel concave spaces; there is an inward-curling lip at the bottom edge of each concrete reinforcing beam. When a friend of a friend (I know, but I have proof) from the Washington State Department of Transportation inspected the ramp in September 2001, this is what he found.
Posted by Charles on September 16, 2003 11:37 PM