Ben Franklin Bridge Celebration

Ben Franklin Bridge Celebration

Picture Provided by Tom Fekete

Bill's Festival Summary

Saturday night featured a magnificent fireworks display as part of the Welcome America experience in Philadelphia. Prior to this, the Ben Franklin Bridge dazzled spectators with an amazing visual display utilizing its $7 million lighting scheme. For anyone who hasn't seen this decorative lighting in person, you cannot begin to experience its beauty through pictures and videos. There are 184 vari-lites running along the entire suspended deck (level with the train tracks), that change to any color required. Additionally, similar lights adorn the towers from their fronts and sides. The effect, in combination with the nearly 14 year old cable lights, is incredible. When programmed and synchronized with music, the effect is mind blowing. For ten minutes last night, the bridge visually danced and illuminated, as a musical history from 1926-2001 was blared over both the Camden and Philadelphia shores. The most emotional part was when the theme to 2001 was played...sheer power and awe!! The Philadelphia Boys Choir then sang several pieces while circling around the shores on the Spirit Of Philadelphia. Before they finished, they sang happy birthday to the bridge.

At last the fireworks began. Unlike virtually every fireworks display I've seen here, two barges were placed in TWO locations; one on either side of the bridge. They too were synchronized to music, and each barge flawlessly exploded exactly the same firework as the other, at exactly the same time. It was a powerful experience, which was only the beginning of a grand bridge celebration.

I arrived at the Camden plaza at 5:30 this morning. At 5:45, the bridge roadway was opened to walkers. I immediately headed up the north pedestrian walkway, to the Camden anchorage where tours were occurring. Luckily we waited for only ten minutes. The wait was at least 90 minutes by the time of the crowds peak. The anchorage was a slight disappointment to me, as I was very eager to see cable splaying, eyebars, etc. The only element of cables visible was a brief glimpse through an open door which showed several eyebars and strands. This door was probably 80 feet away! Main cable restoration was completed last year, and to prevent further corrosion in these lifelines, dehumidifiers are now in the anchorages, and cover up a significant portion of what was once visible cablework. I spoke with a DRPA engineer, who told me that approximately 1,200 cable strands were found to be broken when the rehab took place. Each main cable is composed of 18,666 strands, so the safety factor of the cables remains very high.

Once I left the anchorage, I then strolled across the roadway of the bridge. I took a ton of photos, and by the time I reached the Philadelphia plaza, a much more significant crowd had appeared. I took photos from the Philly plaza (which, believe it or not, I had never done before), then took a tram to the center of the span. Because I was aiming for photos from many angles, I walked back to the Camden plaza, and then up and across the south pedestrian walkway. The crowd on the roadway was at its greatest by this point, and the line for the anchorage tour extended from the anchorage all the way to the mid-point between the Camden tower and mid-span. Crowd estimates were heard to be in the region of 100,000...which is FAR more than anyone had expected. At 10:45AM, the four Winged Victory "angels" which originally stood at each plaza were unveiled once again. They had been lying dormant under the Philadelphia plaza for fifty years. Because the bridge plazas are now too wide to accomodate them, they will be placed at the terminals of the soon-to- be-constructed aerial tram between Camden and Philadelphia.

My rambling discourse cannot begin to justify the amazing day that I experienced on the Benjamin Franklin Bridge's 75th Anniversary. It was clearly one of the greatest bridge days in my life. My grandfather walked across the bridge on opening day 75 years ago, and his recollection of the experience was very clear. Today I was given the once-in-a-lifetime experience to briefly walk in his shoes again.

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