How New York Maintains Its Over 2,000 Aging Bridges - NYC Revealed

[@FinancialShinanigan]

Glad to hear the How It's Made voice

[@hxhx]

Actually I was just thinking this sounded like a documentary from 90s. A bit outdated

[@ZNotFound]

@@hxhx Outdated? Like the bridges in New York?

[@JonathanNilens]

@@hxhx I was thinking exactly the same thing!

[@retroN8iV]

Happened to the female voice?

[@Confessional24]

@@hxhx it’s the guy from How It’s Made!! Outdated? Try iconic

[@user-yr8lt1ii3u]

We made the custom tools to remove the old bolts and set accurate torque on the new bolts on the cable connections on the George Washington bridge during the project!

[@empty2849]

Lol

[@thegoodgodabove8264]

I live in Brooklyn and use the Williamsburg bridge all the time and there is constantly repair being done on the bridge. It's honestly impressive considering the amount of travel the bridge sustains and the workers that make that happen are unsung heros

[@ft9kop]

Blue collar union workers

[@grillage2]

All Bridges are under constant Maintenance! Ever right after they are opened to the pubic.

[@ClementinesmWTF]

The Brooklyn bridge isn’t actually a suspension bridge. Because of its sheer size, it had to be built as a hybrid suspension (vertical cables hanging from arched main cables) and cable-stayed (diagonal cables that connect directly to the towers and deck) in order to handle the extreme loads. Absolutely amazing engineering, but true suspension bridges of that kind of magnitude would take a while to come around after Brooklyn bridge when the technology allowed for it

[@purplealice]

Robeling pioneered the technique of digging"caisson" and pressurizing the atmosphere within them, in order to build a bridge pillarand anchor it to the bedrock in the middle of the water.

[@ClementinesmWTF]

@@purplealice yet another engineering feat that came along with the Brooklyn Bridge. I wish architects nowadays had as much engineering backgrounds as they used to have. There’s very few schools that offer Architectural Engineering as a degree and it’s an absolute shame. Architecture is not just the artsy-fartsy stuff, it also involves a lot of mathematics and engineering. Roebling was a Civil Engineer and I wish modern architects at least studied that field before they went to study their artistic field

[@benttwisted210]

Weren't the cable stays added later on to accommodate heavier trucks?

[@DigitalAndInnovation]

I may be misremembering... But arn't cable-stayed bridges a subcategory of suspension bridges?

[@ClementinesmWTF]

@@DigitalAndInnovation no they are not a subcategory. They are distinct in how they carry their loads.

[@desmond-hawkins]

Not only did John Roebling not see the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge, but the way he died is remarkable in the sense that it would be unlikely to happen today. During one of the preliminary bridge surveys a ferry crushed his foot and he had to have his toes amputated. He developed a tetanus infection and died after a few weeks. Not only do we have a vaccine against tetanus now, we also know how to treat it and better hygiene make such infections rare. After he died his son Washington Roebling took over supervision of its construction with great help from his wife Emily Warren Roebling. Her major role in the construction is too often forgotten, including in this video. Washington Roebling also had health issues due to this project, like the "bends" due to the caissons used to build the pillars. The history of this bridge is fascinating!

[@fib4923]

great insight

[@Shloopy420]

i appreciated this comment, thanks

[@jackgerberuae]

What is the “bends”.?

[@daneclark3161]

@@jackgerberuae - Breathing highly compressed air, and then too quickly breathing less compressed air (like coming up to the surface too quickly when scuba diving) causes nitrogen bubbles in your body to expand. They tend to get trapped in joints which make a person stoop over, which is why it is called the bends. It is extremely painful and can be lethal.

[@doom-generation4109]

I came to the comments to mention Emily Warren Roebling myself after being disappointed that she wasn't mentioned, despite it not being the point of the video. Very glad to see that somebody else saw fit to mention it too.

[@nickmista1172]

Only 5:00-7:15 actually is answering the topic in the title. 10 minutes out of a 12 minute video is a lot of unrelated content. Should have titled the video something else because maintenance was a very small part of it that I'm disappointed wasn't discussed more.

[@Chrisc0Disc0]

Thank for this. So many modern KZbin videos take so long to answer a simple question.

[@alandeutsch7769]

i enjoyed the context and other information

[@yogitam2372]

For us New Yorkers who drive, the Williamsburg Bridge is the most challenging. I got my license at 17 (1983) and drove daily from Chinatown to Flushing Queens. I got a lot of experience at driving at a young age. I was driving a 1976 Chevrolet Monte Carlo (pretty big boat for back in the day). On the Willy B Bridge, the car lane was just enough and there wasn't much leeway on either side of the lane. This is the inner lanes, the outer lanes had a few more inches of leeway. But if I go side by side with another car or truck, you had to maintain your nerves. It is why at night time when there is less traffic, the less experienced drivers will stay in the middle of both lanes as they can't handle being so close next to another car. Good NY driving lessons. Oh Yeah, shout out to my fellow NYers who can parallel park their boats with 2-3 inches leeway front and back. I miss real cars with real bumpers. Nowadays, you got rear cameras. we were all skills back in the day.

[@lasunsalaam2557]

I HATE WHEN A CAR RIDES THE MIDDLE LINE ON 'Willy B Bridge'....only the big trucks should be doing that

[@anthonycameron2067]

Specially when we drove caddys and buick 225 back in the days

[@extremeNothingness]

This gives me Modern Marvels vibe. RIP History channel. Thanks Cheddar!

[@Saxshoe]

Cheddar really read the first line of the "List of bridges and tunnels in NYC" wikipedia page, without citation, and used it for their title.

[@destroyer-fr4dz]

?

[@JonathanNilens]

@@destroyer-fr4dz I am equally confused...

[@AHWolverine]

More importantly, why do you know that? 😆

[@plastikman5889]

Buddie forgot the assignment was due at mid night and was hoping the teacher didn't notice

[@tylerdurden788]

Ok? Not sure if that counts as plagiarism.

[@hesterclapp9717]

You've got to admit fire fighters are obsessed, at least to a small extent, with cutting up people's cars

[@alandeutsch7769]

gotta respect how much effort they put into preparing for every possible situation

[@andrewemerson1613]

those pedestrian bridges sound pretty neat in the longer term

[@mariamercy7317]

And suddenly I'm in a "New York State of Mind!" Having come across this video (6/02/2022) of these amazing bridges put tears 😢 and smiles 😊 on my face. While living in The Heights, (1960s) my dad would walk me across The GW Bridge for a fun day at Palisades Park. Awwww to reminise... By the way, great video and many interesting comments here. God bless you all!

[@ricardokim4870]

I LOVE new YORK city.

[@awaspthatswatchingyou4559]

When me and my mom and sister broke down on the bridge, this huge truck came with a huge pad on the front and pushed us into jersey. The most we waited was less than 2 minutes.

[@AngryVet44]

How does New York have 2000 Bridges?!?! Pittsburgh “the City of Bridges” has a record 446 and isn’t nearly as flat as NYC so it needs those bridges to make travel into the city from 360 degrees possible.

[@superclutch9444]

I think they’re counting simple highway overpasses as bridges too

[@the0ne809]

They are counting tunnels as well. He said it on the video but they didn't add that part in the title.

[@militaryav8r]

Super clutch is right. They’re also responsible for the upkeep of overpasses too. They all require adequate attention and maintenance to prevent collapse. Having been all over New York though, I’ve seen some pretty rickety bridges. Im not so sure they do the best job at it.

[@kazuichicarter-mcginty3565]

they could be talking about new york state.

[@mitchellwalker9839]

@@kazuichicarter-mcginty3565 the title says NYC meaning New York City

[@alexisvongermania3812]

Finally a voice that is fully hearable and understandable.

[@nicholasfield6127]

I'm surprised the bridges lasted that long. We have a bridge in my city built in the 70s that is getting replaced because its no longer any good

[@panacoaster]

That's cuz it wasn't maintained probably possibly neglected alot. And when they decided to want to fix it it was costly so just got rid of it.

[@nicholasfield6127]

@@panacoaster they said it was only built to last 50 years.

[@OscarUnrated]

I assume that’s a smaller bridge. Imagine how difficult it’d be to destroy and rebuild the Brooklyn bridge.

[@michaelmorales1475]

The Throgs Neck & Whitestone Bridges that Connect The Bronx & Queens are My Favorite NYC Bridges.

[@M4TTYN]

I hate riding the Q44 over the whitestone bridge but worth going to microcenter (think bestbuy but 100000x better & has all you could want really) drivers be so passive agressive at times on it. But worth to build confidence, not for the on edge & light panic attack lol.

[@michaelmorales1475]

@@M4TTYN The Bridge does look pretty creepy when there's Fog around, I still remember My First Time Riding over it on The Q44 SBS Bus and all I saw was Fog, not to mention it was Dark Outside too.

[@cleverusername9369]

I swear, this is the same narrator from the "How It's Made" show we all grew up with in the early to mid 00s, between watching Mythbusters and Dirty Jobs.

[@benmcreynolds8581]

To do projects without halting use of the bridge adds so much complexity and depth to the project and upkeep.. I wish our society was adaptable where we could temporarily close a bridge to work on it and it would be no problem because our society would just pause something's for a temporary amount of time, no big deal, but we have to have this, go, go, go perspective "only" and it's exhausting honestly and it makes jobs a lot more time, money consuming and tedious in nature then if you just had the ability to work without citizens flying all around you as your doing bridge maintenance.. tons of respect to the workers and construction maintenance workers 👍

[@yugioht42]

The Brooklyn bridge just got a upgrade by taking out a single traffic lane and adding a barrier they got a new bike lane. It’s open now but some signs and reflective markers need to be added in for safety. It works for now. At least it’s better than the mess near LaGuardia.

[@ivankoot2912]

checker plate isn’t more durable than normal steel plate. It only serves a anti slip function.

[@NuSpirit_]

Man the music at 1:16 is amazing. Don't suppose anyone knows the name of the track? EDIT: Also at 2:44 and 9:47 (overall the music/audio was brilliant in it)

[@lobozlato11tj]

Just a heads up, every bridge is an aging bridge.

[@KODO123PRODUCTIONS]

duhh

[@AdamSmith-gs2dv]

So what? I like the older bridges they have charm and character new Bridges don't have

[@cleverusername9369]

Literally every single thing that exists in the entire universe is an aging thing because, ya know, time?

[@jingleball2427]

Huge shoutout to those men an women whose sole job is to help people when they're in trouble. Nobel

[@buzkie314159]

Much less focused and less enjoyable than cheddar's other videos. This felt like something discovery would use to fill airtime in the middle of the night.

[@sethmaki1333]

My personal favorite is the Verrazano Narrows bridge.

[@Obsidian_GTR]

Same

[@justhearmeout]

Great story as always. 👏 👏 👏 Can anyone do a story on the Manhattan bridge? It has and always is under construction. For years with a terrible ride.... 😡

[@willmatic84]

🤣 that bridge been in construction since it first opened

[@grillage2]

@@willmatic84 ALL Bridges are in constant maintenance since their opening. Bridges are in a environment that requires constant repairs and maintenance.

[@AQCE245]

What about the verrazano bridge?

[@jakes.house.]

Am i crazy or has production value gone up since last I saw one of these cheddar videos like a year ago

[@GloryToTheLamb33]

i love this channel, so much cool information

[@mariew4422]

I like how the j train goes over the bridge and you get a great view of the water & the city 🙃 it's freaks some people out lol but honestly it's amazing. We're so connected i forget that we're sorrounded by water sometimes

[@RudieObias]

Cheddar presents The History Channel....

[@henrysantos121]

New York City never sleep God bless NY cities.🙏.

[@rieriec.36]

I got fed UP WITH THE AD INTERRUPTIONS EVERY 2 MINUTES!....never have I seen ads so CLOSE TOGETHER. .ill look for this subject elsewhere.

[@taipizzalord4463]

How New York Maintains Its Over 2,000 Aging Bridges? Answer: They don't.

[@dsmusic21]

Tunnel and Bridge Agent emergency services. Amazing job! Helping people, super rewarding.

[@AdamSmith-gs2dv]

We spend $17 to cross these damn bridges so I hope they are maintained well

[@raysterE176Tremont]

I love my city NY. Bronx native💯

[@CCPotato]

The narrator from every boring documentary you had to sit through in science class.

[@Gertyutz]

After Roebling, the engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge, became disabled, his wife Emily took over much of the chief engineer duties, including day-to-day supervision and project management of the bridge. She was the first to cross the completed bridge in 1883. She later continued her education and received a law certificate from New York University. She's my hero.

[@jackgerberuae]

I have yet to understand where the 2000 bridges are?

[@crazeyjoe]

The upper level of the Verrazzano really needs a bicycle and pedestrian path added. Long overdue.

[@grillage2]

Never going to happen.

[@MichaelOKeefe2009]

NYC has over 2000 bridges? That's insane!!!!!

[@shigekax]

Where do they store them ??

[@ct2020]

It blows my mind that a bridge built in 1883 is still in use. I'd be curious what type of reinforcements have been needed as traffic use and weight has increased.

[@grillage2]

LONG story.

[@Gertyutz]

Mostly because the towers are concrete, not metal. Safest bridge in NYC.

[@yaycupcake]

I'm curious, for Americans here who aren't from NYC, did you learn about the Brooklyn Bridge's construction in school? I remember learning about it and its construction back in elementary school. (For some context, this would be in the late 1990s.) But I went to school near downtown Brooklyn, not far from the Brooklyn Bridge itself. Is this sort of thing taught in curriculums outside of the local area?

[@KrishnaAdettiwar]

Nope, I never learned about it in school in Colorado. This is kinda embarrassing but I didn’t even know about the Brooklyn bridge until high school 😂

[@justinlalugski2083]

great video but why, on the graphic you kept showing of an overhead view of the island, did you have the orientation sideways??? had me all screwed up at first, was like "what TF am i looking at?"

[@sgt.grambo7364]

Fun Fact: The Brooklyn Bridge was built in 1883 for $15M. That's $913M in today's money.

[@reeeech9245]

it's crazy, that the first settlers travels 1000s of miles and then finally discover the americas/mainland and then only to settle on this island instead lol

[@danjames8825]

There are 789 bridges in NYC. Not thousands.

[@ThecrazyJH96]

THE MOST…EXTREME

[@rayfridley6649]

The trans-Hudson River structure that most needs attention right now is not a bridge. It's the railroad tunnel used by the trains to and from the Pennsylvania Station. Efforts are now underway to raise the needed money to build a new tunnel and refurbish the existing rail tubes, which are over a century old and in bad condition. Port Authority is much involved with this one.

[@NoThrottle]

I watched this all the way through thinking this video was from 2018. I didn't realize it was just released today

[@mats7492]

The masks are a dead giveaway

[@rieriec.36]

@@mats7492 Said video was released TODAY....MASKS HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR THE LAST *(2) YEARS ...big difference

[@NoThrottle]

@@mats7492 I've seen masks so much I didn't even think about them being out of the normal

[@kendy4]

Cheddar Upped their budget now they got the “How it’s Made” guy voice.

[@mtlhkn]

you know what just fill the rivers.

[@TrafficPartyHatTest]

That just sounds like a bad idea

[@mtlhkn]

​@@TrafficPartyHatTest as it stands. though that came out that way because i had a little shock about how many bridges new york has.

[@anthonytheitalian2863]

My dad and my Nonno and Nonna used to use the ferry before Brooklyn bridge was built…..

[@jeffw8218]

People who made this video OBVSIOUSLY have either never driven on a NYC bridge, or are shills for the pathetic NYC government. The Bridges/tunnels/roads in NYC are barely maintained and have HUGE potholes all over the place.

[@King_of_Africa]

Lies...I'm constantly driving between boroughs daily and none of the major bridges have any potholes.

[@MrJimheeren]

I’m pretty sure Cheddar is based in NYC and the New York bridges are decently maintained, although the Tappan Zee bridge was almost falling apart by the time they replaced it

[@BeefJerky_FromNewJersey]

Tappan zee is a New York State problem. The city doesn’t have jurisdiction

[@dinadepoala8064]

So nice.

[@Rebelnightwolfe]

Is it still nearly impossible to get into NYC without paying a toll via car? if you set Google Maps to "no tolls" it still takes a tolled route into the city.

[@JVR10893]

Free NYC Bridges Manhattan/Brooklyn -Brooklyn Bridge -Manhattan Bridge -Williamsburg Bridge Manhattan/Queens -Queensboro Bridge -Roosevelt Island Bridge Manhattan/Bronx -Willis Avenue Bridge -Madison Avenue Bridge -145th Street Bridge -Macombs Dam Bridge -Alexander Hamilton Bridge -Washington Bridge -University Heights Bridge Brooklyn/Queens -Koscuiuszko Bridge As for getting into the five boroughs from outside of the city for free, it’s easy to do from Long Island as you just drive on the highway into Queens. As for Upstate New York, just take the highway into The Bronx. New Jersey it’s impossible to get into the city from without paying a toll, and there is no free way to get into Staten Island by car.

[@dubreil07]

@@JVR10893he said get into NYC which I assume he means from NJ. There is no way to get into NYc for free from NJ. Every bridge and tunnel is a toll

[@heroired3973]

So cool!

[@ROCKKEENO]

9:40 “everyday could be a different day” lol what, I’m sorry I noticed this

[@sw00natra]

Is this an episode of Modern Marvels?

[@JonathanNilens]

Disliked the video for not at least giving metric references besides the imperial ones. It is annoying if you're watching a video to relax and you end up having to calculate all the time... (Yeah I get that it is about bridges in a city in the USA, but still the Metric Conversion Act was signed nearly 50 years ago)

[@grillage2]

The CORRECT pronunciation of the Goethals bridge is Go-Thuls, Not Goth-Als.

[@jacksheet2395]

Bridges,,tunnels and elevated trains. Scares me,,,over 100 years old

[@AllanBell-si9hp]

It's just too many people in N.Y and the winters are hard.

[@rockthelightGomer]

Graffiti: creativity

[@notfadeaway6617]

How much has been spent?

[@chrisklugh]

2000? Typo?

[@koantao8321]

Yes, no mention of the many bridges within the city. The text should have been clearer after that title, as there was practically only mention and images of the big ones.

[@hillppari]

meanwhile there are lots of other bridges in the US that are falling apart

[@CodyLamson]

They need to be redoing the surface of the GW. That shit has several foot holes in the ground and it’s ridiculously unnecessary.

[@rickieg9870]

Thousands? No. Hundreds yes. There are 700ish bridges in NYC.

[@thegrumpydragon7601]

I have been on George Washington bridge My taxi driver was nice enough to scam me

[@eagleeye8916]

consider it a tip . passengers are cheap

[@bruceincremona9241]

With the amount of money they charge in tolls and the amount of vehicles that use that bridge everyday the bridge should be paved and gold.

[@prabhushankar8520]

Good.

[@jeromefitzroy]

Also the most congested in the world

[@emeraldkimble7602]

The harlem river bridges are toll free

[@grillage2]

Because they are owned by NYCDOT.

[@jonathankelly2655]

It doesn't. I walk across GWB and concrete breaks off and falls below.

[@ainsleyharriott2209]

The title is being very generous with the definition of a bridge...

[@TheDylanJoyce]

I don't wanna set the world on fire....

[@moynul313]

$2 billion dollars to renovate and make it last another 100 years? Can't we just build another bridge for that price?

[@jakegolding8388]

I think this new joint project between Cheddar and Nebula is a great idea. Together, you have more resources, talent and connections. But what I’m seeing are old style mini-documentaries that would have been shown on the History Channel or Discovery 10+ years ago. They feel stale. From the choice of the narrator to the script and the lack of personal involvement (no on doing the interview and asking questions) it all feels like it’s been done before - even if it hasn’t. Where’s the enthusiasm? Where’s the social commentary? You mentioned that the city recently put aside $200 million to repair bridges all over New York, but that seems wholly insufficient for the scale. $200 million for 2000 bridges? That’s not much. That would be an interesting story! Anyway, I offer my feedback because I have great respect for Cheddar and Nebula and have enjoyed content from both organizations. It just took me by surprise because the style was so different than what I was use to. Maybe this series isn’t for me but there will be others in the future that I will enjoy. Best of luck

[@TheDCGuitar13]

How to maintain cities from falling apart? Men. Men. That’s how!

[@robcerrato6528]

Let’s get pedestrian and cyclist paths on all NYC bridges!

[@donaldleider7382]

How does New York maintain its bridges? Not very well, except for high profile bridges like the Brooklyn or George Washington bridge.

[@jollyronacher]

If they can just make them have less traffic then I’d be happy… we can always dream…

[@shirknado7953]

put trains on them, then you'd have less traffic

[@patrick_test123]

Just one more lane and we'll fix traffic forever. 😂

[@M4TTYN]

@@shirknado7953 so the homeless will be on those too? no thanks.

[@hackman669]

@@M4TTYN Simply make homeless into low cost workers, place them into low cost housing. Win, win😽😼☠💀🦹‍♂🧙‍♂🧚‍♂🚣🏋‍♀🏋‍♂🏋🤼‍♀🚴‍♂👩‍👦‍👦🐉🐍🐡🐛🐋🪶🐢🦅🐲🐲🐉

[@AshLilburne]

How does one block this channel? Ive looked in all the usual places but cant find anything. It really shouldn't be this hard

[@AshLilburne]

Lol youve gotta click on a tiny flag in the about section. Ridiculous

[@Numbahz]

Cause WE DA BEST AINT NO PLACE LIKE OUR GREAT CITY !! BRING IT #NYrealFINEST #blacklifesmatter #nycBridgesdept

[@dynomar11]

I haven't watched yet, but if it's anything like the sewage video, the answer is "not well at all".

[@VoidOg999]

Its kinda sad how this is the pinnacle of America

[@arl4422]

Wait until some actual patriotic person goes for candidacy

[@Foxone1111]

is it just me or did the bridge sag? 0:08

[@MistarZtv]

meanwhile the bridges where im from in just three years.

[@danielnascimento6300]

I swear this guy who does the voiceovers has monopolised the work on YT.

[@TetaGama]

2000 bridges ? That's excessive

[@TrafficPartyHatTest]

many river + many car = very bridge

[@alphonsemaina8293]

@@TrafficPartyHatTest Why not train instead?

[@TrafficPartyHatTest]

@@alphonsemaina8293 would also have to go across bridges

[@actor260]

@@alphonsemaina8293 Train tunnels are also included in that figure. NYC sits on 3 islands and then mainland United States. In order for our subway to run (or for any of us to get between the different boroughs) we need the bridges and tunnels. That's why there are so many here. We also need ways to get people from New Jersey, Connecticut and Long Island into the city for work. No matter how they get here (car or train), they will have to use a bridge or tunnel. Plus, in addition to the 3 main islands, there are about 36 more islands in NYC (Rikers, City Island, Randalls, Roosevelt, etc.) that also have bridges. And that figure also includes bridges in all of the parks. For instance, Central Park alone has almost 50 (with the majority of them being pedestrian bridges). And then you have tons of bridges in Prospect Park, Pelham Bay Park, Flushing Meadows, etc. It starts to add up.

[@alphonsemaina8293]

@@TrafficPartyHatTest But it would be able to transport way more people than a road bridge.

[@skylineXpert]

Is new york running out of space for new bridges?

[@regolani5517]

Jesus loves you he died on the cross for your sins. All you have to do is believe in him and you will be saved. ❤

[@grillage2]

PLEASE Keep your religion OUT of engineering and science.

[@Brick-Life]

lots of briges!

[@adamantium7]

*Pittsburgh has left the chat*

[@asdsdjfasdjxajiosdqw8791]

Not that interested in America. Could you do more videos on Europe?

[@hackman669]

Well Merica is a cheaper version of Europe and ...

[@stopmakingsense9915]

No.

[@notusneo]

Theseus Bridge