The Gateway Bridge was developed by the Detroit Regional Gateway Advisory Council in preparation for Super Bowl XL, hosted in nearby Detroit in February 2006. It was one of several improvements made in the mid-2000s along of Interstate 94. The bridge cost $14 million and was part of an approximately $520 million I-94 improvements. The unique design meant that the cost was $2 million higher than conventional plate-girder bridges, causing public controversy. Private funds were largely used to cover the increase. Inspiration for the bridge came from a 1987 article by Frank Peters in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about a tied-arch bridge over the Mississippi River. Construction began in May 2004 while I-94 traffic continued to utilize existing bridges. C.A. Hull Company was contracted to construct the bridges and Dan's Excavating Inc. performed demolition work. Ruby+Associates provided construction engineering and proposed an alternate construction method that eliminated the need for large shoring. A steel delivery delay caused work to slow at one point. The beams were fabricated by PDM Bridge. The bridge was covered with three coats of blue paint and one clear coat to prevent fading. The bridge was completed in Fall 2005. It is known as the Gateway Bridge, because it acts as the "gateway to Detroit" for those traveling on I-94 from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to the City of Detroit.
Design
Engineers from the Michigan Department of Transportation worked with Alfred Benesch & Company to create the bridge design. The bridge features twin tied-arch steel spans featuring two large blue ovals, augmented with additional ovals, meant to evoke images of footballs, to commemorate Super Bowl XL. The arches reach above I-94 and above US 24. The bridge is long and wide. The six-lane bridge carries I-94 over the eight-lane US 24. The design introduced a single-point urban interchange, a new design in Michigan at the time. That interchange was completed in December 2005. Each span uses approximately of steel. The bridge is topped with a concrete deck—which is standard in Michigan—and a micro slice concrete overlay to protect the concrete's structural integrity. addition of a micro alive concrete overlay was unusual in Michigan at the time of the bridge's construction. Special lighting is used to illuminate the bridge at night. In 2007, the National Steel Bridge Alliance awarded the design in its medium span category.
Maintenance
Prior to the bridge's opening, Wayne County and Detroit governments pledged $250,000 per year to maintain the improvements made to I-94 that prompted the bridge's construction. MDOT is responsible for maintenance of the bridge itself.
