The Ben Franklin Bridge 100th Anniversary Celebration happened on Saturday, July 11th. A chance to walk or ride or scoot over the bridge while it’s closed to vehicular traffic. Sounds fun right? It was… sort of. SO many people came out. Tens of thousands of people, and we all sort of trekked together shoulder to shoulder, side by side over the bridge. It was so crowded, that on the Camden side we were met with a complete bottleneck at the bottom of the bridge. It was disappointing for some, especially bikers, or anyone hoping to do anything but walk slowly over the bridge and back.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGIA Birthday Party for a Bridge
The Ben Franklin Bridge opened on July 1st, 1926, connecting Philadelphia to Camden for the first time. 100 years is a big deal usually, but this July we had a lot going on. Within a few short weeks, Philly hosted America’s Semiquincentennial celebration, multiple FIFA World Cup matches (and a Fan Festival), and the MLB All Star Week. Did the planning for the Ben Franklin Bridge 100th birthday celebration get lost in the mix? Maybe?
Kristen Herrmann for BBGISomehow More Traffic Than Usual
The best way to describe the Ben Franklin Bridge 100th ‘celebration’ was that it was not what I expected. I originally planned to take the kids over there for a little jog over the bridge. We brought the kids scooters, and thankfully our stroller, because there was not enough room to jog, or ride a bike, or really do anything other than sort of trudge along with the crowd. Was it terrible? Not at all. Just not what we expected. It was hot, and it took far longer to get across because of the amount of people. Luckily we brought water and snacks, and most of all: sunscreen.
La Colombe for the Win
On a very hot day, after a slow hot walk, the base of the bridge on the Camden side was a LOT. Super crowded, but the one redeeming part was an umbrella stand handing out free ice-cold La Colombe Draft Lattes to the crowd. It was so delicious, and much appreciated. This is not an ad. It was just hot, and these were great.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGIWe Didn’t See Much of Camden
Once you got to Camden, there was nowhere to go. A complete bottleneck at the base of the bridge. The promised food and music and carnival rides were somewhere (I assume), but not a possibility for us. It didn’t seem worth maneuvering through the dense crowd. Maybe if it were just my husband and I, but two kids and a double stroller complicates things. I’m just glad I hadn’t mentioned the carnival rides to the kids. Phew! Lots of people started bailing by jumping over the median.. We had the stroller, and one kid asleep in it, so we just turned around and headed back to Philly.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGILimited to Half the Bridge
Could it have been more spread out? Yup. Officials closed off multiple lanes of traffic and packed everyone into one side of the bridge. They legitimately needed some of those lanes for a shuttle to bring people back over the bridge, and in the event of an emergency. It appeared that there were a number of (heat related, I assume) emergencies as multiple ambulances drove back and forth. Even just one more lane though open to the thousands of pedestrians would have made a huge difference.
Did Anyone RSVP?
I don’t think that anyone had any idea how many people would turn up for this. I certainly didn’t. How do you plan a 100th birthday party for a bridge? The Delaware River Port Authority had asked people to register ahead of time for planning purposes. I didn’t register, and I’m pretty certain I’m one of many. It was super popular, but over-crowded, and not everyone’s cup of tea. Some even tried to warn others not to go.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGI
Overall, we did have fun at the Ben Franklin Bridge 100th Celebration. It was a unique experience to be able to walk over the center of the bridge, along with (what seemed like) all of Philly and Camden. Not what we expected, but everyone was pleasant for the most part, and there were some great people watching opportunities too. A bunch of characters for sure.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGI
While most of us kept walking, some sat for a bit. We kept it moving. Hoping to make it across before the 200th celebration.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGI
We were lucky enough to see and grab a photo with the man himself. A Ben Franklin impersonator was hanging out on the Philly side of the bridge. Not sure if he was there as an official part of the celebration, but he was happy to take photos with anyone walking by.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGIMystery Sauce
Also, randomly, there was cranberry sauce. If anyone has any idea why everyone had to dodge cranberry sauce on the road of the bridge, please let me know. A real mystery.
Kristen Herrmann for BBGIWide Open
At the very end, after we got off the bridge, we kept walking. Not far from the crowds headed toward Camden, the roads leading in the opposite direction to the Vine Street Expressway were all clear. Trudy finally got some room to scoot. 10/10
Kristen Herrmann for BBGI
The event ended with a storm moving in, and then a light show began at dusk to continue the celebration. During Pride, the lights on the Ben Franklin Bridge were lit up in rainbow. In red, white, and blue for the 4th of July. For the Ben Franklin Bridge 100th there was a blue and green light show every 30 minutes from dusk until 2am.
Happy 100th Birthday to the Ben Franklin Bridge. Happy to have been a part of the party. A weird party, but Philly’s pretty weird.