Varina-Enon Bridge - 10 Things to Know Before Visiting

You can't do much from the bridge apart from admiring its view from further away and enjoying the stunning views of the James River and the suspension cables that support it. There should have been an observation deck on the bridge for people to stop and enjoy the views for a few minutes, but sadly it is not the case.

Another activity you can do to have a different angle of the bridge is to kayak on the James river below. It offers nice views of the bridge from underneath.

Varina-Enon Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge which carries Interstate 295 across the James River. It was opened to traffic in July 1990.

The bridge has six lanes in total, three in each direction with road shoulders on each end. The bridge is over the shipping channel that leads to the Port of Richmond, giving a vertical navigational clearance of 46 meters and a horizontal navigational clearance of 192 meters. The bridge is 1,426 meters in length.

Varina-Enon Bridge is owned and maintained by VDOT(Virginia Department of Transportation). VDOT played a significant role in increasing the number of peregrine falcons in Virginia which were listed as federally endangered in 1970.

VDOT learnt that high bridge structures closely match the peregrine falcon's preferred nesting environment on cliff faces and in high trees. In a program that earned them the 1998 Federal Highway Administration Excellence Award in the category of Environment Protection and Enhancements, nesting boxes for these rare birds were established in several bridges including the Varina-Enon Bridge.

In a major victory for the endangered species, and VDOT's environmental efforts, in the spring of 2003, nearly a dozen peregrine falcon chicks were hatched. Most were taken from their nesting boxes on various VDOT bridges for banding and release to their natural habitat.

The population of the peregrine falcons has significantly recovered over the past 30 years, thanks to conservation efforts such as VDOTs. VDOT monitors the falcons on each bridge to ensure they and their habitat are doing well. VDOT has even established falcon-specific contract requirements for the Structure and Bridge Division as it continues to identify other nesting sites.

There is no special time to visit the bridge. Just don't go out during bad weather conditions, like tornadoes.

1. There are no legal spots to stop on the highway leading to the bridge or on the bridge itself so if you are visiting to take some pictures, legal opportunities might be very low.

1. Varina-Enon Bridge was the tallest bridge in Virginia when it opened; it is now the third-tallest.
2. Nesting boxes for endangered Virginia peregrine falcons are placed at the bridge as the high bridge structure matches their nesting habitats.
3. Bridge is named for the cities of Varina and Enon, the closest cities to each end of the bridge.
4. The bridge features the first application of precast concrete delta frames of any bridge in the world. 
5. On August 6, 1993, a tornado made a direct strike on the bridge. While considerable damage was done on the ground, and trucks were overturned on the bridge, the bridge itself was not damaged.

If you are driving through the bridge, you will be passing through it in less than ten minutes.

From Richmond, the bridge is only 25 minutes to reach by car. Take VA-5 and Varina road connected to it later. You will end in an area that offers some good opportunities to take photos of the bridge.

There is no fee to enter the bridge.

Varina-Enon Bridge is open 24 hours since it is a transportation bridge part of a highway.