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unusual facts about ''Congressman William V. Chappel Jr. Memorial Bridge''



Charles M. Braga Jr. Memorial Bridge

This was never as apparent as in March, 1999, when cement acoustical tiles under nearby Fall River Government Center closed the highway for a week at the end of the bridge, causing traffic nightmares for the entire region.

Planning began in the early 1950s for a new bridge to ease the congestion of the nearby Slade's Ferry and Brightman Street Bridges, as well as to carry the proposed Cape Cod Expressway over the Taunton River.

Another change caused by the path of the bridge was the replacement of the former City Hall with the current Fall River Government Center, the first government building built over an interstate.

John A. Lynch, Sr. Memorial Bridge

The bridge was originally known as the Raritan River Bridge, but was renamed in honor of John A. Lynch, Sr., the former State Senator from the district that included New Brunswick and Piscataway, a former mayor of New Brunswick, and the father and namesake of John A. Lynch, Jr., who held those positions at the time of the bridge's completion.

Mount Hope Bay

The perimeter of the bay is crossed by three roadway bridges: the Sakonnet River Bridge to the southeast, the Charles M. Braga Jr. Memorial Bridge to the north, and the Mount Hope Bridge to the southwest.

Port Orange Causeway

The Florida State Legislature designated the new bridge as the Congressman William V. Chappel Jr. Memorial Bridge.


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