---
name: "Borden Avenue Bridge"
subtitle: "One of only four U.S. bridges left that opens by sliding sideways"
date: 2026-07-18
shortlist: true
link: "https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/borden-avenue-bridge"
linkText: "atlasobscura.com"
source: "Atlas Obscura"
topics: [travel-and-places, history-and-archives]
tags: [new-york, bridge, engineering]
description: "The 1908 Borden Avenue Bridge in Long Island City opens not by swinging or lifting but by retracting diagonally along rail tracks — one of only four retractile bridges left in the United States."
---

Most drawbridges swing or lift. The Borden Avenue Bridge, opened in 1908 over Dutch Kills in Long Island City, does neither — it retracts, rolling diagonally backward on narrow rails that look borrowed from a railroad, clearing the channel by sliding out of the way entirely. It's one of only four retractile bridges left standing in the United States, last opened for boat traffic in 2005.