Bridge of Sighs: Bridge So Scary People Pay to Have Their Cars Driven Accross

[Bill]

Don't look down! The Maryland bridge so terrifying locals pay $25 to be driven across in their own car
The William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial Bridge spans nearly five miles of the Chesapeake Bay to connect Maryland's eastern and western shores
The structure is regularly subject to violent storms and instills fear in thousands of Baltimore and Washington residents every time they cross it
Business Kent Island Express has more than 5,000 terrified customers it shuttles across the bridge, charging $25 each way

By Helen Pow

PUBLISHED: 10:52 EST, 27 May 2013 | UPDATED: 07:12 EST, 28 May 2013

An entrepreneurial Maryland man is charging $25 to drive motorists in their own cars across one of the world's scariest bridges because they are too terrified to do it themselves.

The William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial Bridge, known as the Bay Bridge, spans nearly five miles of the Chesapeake Bay to connect Maryland's eastern and western shores. Standing 186 feet tall at its highest point, the structure, which is regularly subject to violent storms, instills fear in thousands of Baltimore and Washington residents every time they drive across it.

This gave Alex Robinson and his family the idea of doing it for them, charging them for the peace of mind of not having to tackle the nerve-racking stretch themselves. And this Memorial Day weekend, as the annual pilgrimage to the beach towns and sailing harbors of the Eastern Shore began, business was booming.

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'About 5,800 people use our service,' Robinson, of Kent Island Express, told The New York Times on Friday as he fielded calls from some of those nervous customers.

The bridge, which when it first opened in 1952 was the longest continuous over-water steel structure, has been rated by Travel & Leisure Magazine as the ninth scariest bridge in the world for the panic it instills in Maryland residents.

When bad weather hits, which is often, drivers can barely see the shore when they get to the middle.

It also has tall ships that pass beneath it and flimsy-looking guardrails that reveal a vertigo-inducing drop to the choppy waters below.

'Everyone talks about the fear of crossing the bridge,' Carolyn Casey, who lives in Washington and has a second home near St. Michaels, Maryland, told The Times.


With the passenger seat taken up by two Labrador retrievers, she squeezed into the backseat between her three-year daughter and a nanny as Robinson got behind the wheel.

'When I told people I'd found someone to drive me over the bridge, they laughed,' Casey, 41, said. 'But it all came out — everyone is afraid of the bridge.'

That's because crossing the bridge is quite an endeavor, even when the weather is fine.


First, drivers have to tackle a disconcerting comes a dogleg curve, then travel up a steep incline over the initial suspension span; then the bridge drops and the motorist drives downhill and over a second span, a cantilever with boxy sides and a roof that feels like a claustrophobic tunnel.


Robinson took over the unique business last year from his mother and stepfather who ran it for five years. He told The Times it had made him something of an amateur psychologist.


Robinson hires only upbeat drivers, and instructs them to talk about anything but the bridge for the 10-15 minutes it takes to cross.

'Their stress and anxieties feed off of your mood,' he explains to them.


He said most customers, nervous, talk a lot during the trip - about everything from their children to their first boyfriend.

Driving the 'World's Scariest Bridge'


But he also described construction workers who rode in the back seat of their trucks, hats pulled over their eyes and their ears plugged, and a woman who rode with a blanket over her head because she was so scared.

One man, Robinson told The Times, asked to be put in the trunk, but the request was refused.

Another has paid $50-a-day for years to be driven across the bridge to his job in the morning and then back at the end of the day.

'Nervous about crossing over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge?' the website states. 'If so, you’re not alone. Our Bay Bridge Drive-Over Help will let you relax and enjoy the ride and the view!'


The company instructs drivers who are 'nervous or need assistance for any reason' to contact them an hour before they get to the bridge.


'Once you call we'll coordinate a meeting location an assist you from there by driving your vehicle over the bridge for you,' the website states, adding that the drive-over service is provided from 5am til 12am.

Huge: The five mile long bridge is even visible from space, as shown in the above image
Visible from space: The five-mile-long bridge is even visible from space, as shown in the above image

However, drivers of motorcycles, rental vehicles, or commercial vehicles are left to their own devices, as the company said it cannot accommodate such vehicles.

Customer, Kathleen Busch, explained her fear of the bridge stemmed from getting trapped in the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel for hours.


The next time she tried to drive through the tunnel she told the newspaper 'everything went white. I had a full-blown panic attack. I thought I was going to pass out.'


Scared the same thing would happen on the Bay Bridge, Busch hasn't attempted to drive it herself.


The terrifying structure isn't the only bridge to have driver assistance programs in place, but because it links two major cities, it is the only one with enough traffic to support a shuttle service industry.

Aside from Kent Island Express, two other companies ferry drivers across the nightmare bridge.


Read more: Chesapeake Bay bridge: The Maryland bridge so terrifying locals pay $25 for company to shuttle them across in their own car | Mail Online
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[JRD77VET]

That is a pretty tall bridge


My mom and step dad kept their boat at Kent Narrows when they lived in MD.

[Y2Kvert4me]

Not afraid of bridges by any means, but driving across that one did freak me out some.



Beadist might recall that discussion at New Years...This is the one I was talking about.

[Defib1961]

Robin Trower Live - Bridge of Sighs - YouTube

[73sbVert]

Meh. The Bay Bridge-Tunnel is scarier I think!

[Defib1961]

Originally Posted by 73sbVert

Meh. The Bay Bridge-Tunnel is scarier I think!

Double meh, the bridge leading to my ex mother-in-law was scarier

[Y2Kvert4me]

I thought the bridge-tunnel was pretty damn cool.

[Norm]

Drive over it quite often, don't give it a thought. Will be going over it tomorrow afternoon, last leg of the trip.

[JRD77VET]

Originally Posted by Norm

Drive over it quite often, don't give it a thought. Will be going over it tomorrow afternoon, last leg of the trip.

"meh, it's the bay bridge"

Have a safe trip

[DukeAllen]

I've driven over it many times, I've never even seen weather as bad as they say. Some wind and even fog but nothing to make me need fresh underwear

[VatorMan]

Bridge over Royal Gorge was much scarier. Or ANY bridge in Thailand.

[ZipZap]

The Bay Bridge? Really? Sure, a big rig gets blown off every couple of years but it's not scary.

Maybe it's because most of the eastern shore exists without indoor plumbing.

[snide]

That bridge looks like it would be fun!

[MrPeabody]

The only thing I fear about bridges is the toll booth.

[yell01]

Doesn't look like a big deal to me.

[C5Nate]

Originally Posted by ZipZap

The Bay Bridge? Really? Sure, a big rig gets blown off every couple of years but it's not scary.

I agree, only been across it twice. Once on a clear day, rainy night the next time.


I just dont understand how adults can be scared of heights, bridges, etc, etc.


Its not like bridges just fall into the river......... and shit.
























.

[Blue 92]

Phhhtttt.

It's a log bridge over a creek.

Lake Pontchartrain / Causeway History
Lake Pontchartrain was named for the Count de Pontchartrain who served as minister of finance during the reign of France's "Sun King," Louis XIV for whom Louisiana is named.

Lake Pontchartrain and the Causeway comprise one of America's most famous scenic attractions. The lake is home to a wide variety of fish and shellfish, ducks and other kinds of waterfowl. Pelicans are making a comeback in the lake as well. Ancient trees festooned with Spanish moss mark the lake's edges. The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation has made extraordinary progress in recent years in making the lake clean and beautiful.

The Causeway Spans 24 miles and is the longest bridge over water in the world. The bridge’s parallel spans are made of pre*stressed panels supported by over 9,000 concrete pilings. The first span opened to the public in 1956, the second in 1969. The result was one *way driving safety on straight, two* lane railed surfaces 80 *feet apart connected by seven crossovers that function as pull*over areas for auto emergencies.

[Fasglas]

Have crossed it several times. No big deal.

[DukeAllen]

Originally Posted by ZipZap

Maybe it's because most of the eastern shore exists without indoor plumbing.

Are you Willy Don's boy?

[NEED-A-VETTE]

The Mackinac Bridge offers this service for free. Some people are freaked out by the length of the bridge. Some don't like that the center two lanes are made up of grates.

From Wiki:

The road deck is shaped as an airfoil to provide lift in a cross wind, and the center two lanes are open grid to allow vertical (upward) air flow, which fairly precisely cancels the lift, making the roadway stable in design in winds of up to 150 miles per hour (240 km/h).

...

The Mackinac Bridge Authority has a Drivers Assistance Program that provides drivers for those uncomfortable with driving across the Mackinac Bridge. Those interested can arrange, either by phone or with the toll collector, to have their cars or motorcycles driven to the other end. There is no additional fee for this service.