Contrary to earlier reports, officials from the Delaware River and Bay Authority have confirmed that the Delaware Memorial Bridge will remain open when the iconic SS United States passes underneath it on November 15, 2024.
Initial press releases from a Florida-based organization had suggested that the bridge, along with the Walt Whitman and Commodore Barry bridges, would close temporarily to accommodate the historic vessel’s final journey. However, James Salmon, Public Information Officer for the Delaware River and Bay Authority, clarified that the clearance beneath the Delaware Memorial Bridge is ample, at more than 30 feet, and that no closure is anticipated.
The SS United States, a 990-foot-long ocean liner and once a symbol of American maritime prowess, will be towed from its longtime dock in Philadelphia down the Delaware River to the Atlantic Ocean and then south to Mobile, Alabama. There, preparations will be made for it to become the world’s largest artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico.
