Manhattan Bridge. The Manhattan Bridge is a suspension bridge that crosses the East River in New York City, connecting Lower Manhattan at Canal Street with Downtown Brooklyn at the Flatbush Avenue Extension. Some artists emphasize the bridge's architectural grandeur and the interplay of light and shadow, sometimes infusing their works with a sense of solitude and introspection reflecting the complexities of city life. Other artists focus on the vibrant energy around the bridge, portraying bustling street scenes full of life and movement. Designed by Leon Moisseiff and built by the Phoenix Bridge Company, the bridge has a total length of 6,855 feet. It is one of four toll-free vehicular bridges connecting Manhattan Island to Long Island; the nearby Brooklyn Bridge is just slightly farther west, while the Queensboro and Williamsburg bridges are to the north. The bridge was proposed in 1898 and was originally called Bridge No. 3 before being renamed the Manhattan Bridge in 1902. Foundations for the bridge's suspension towers were completed in 1904, followed by the anchorages in 1907 and the towers in 1908. The Manhattan Bridge opened to traffic on December 31, 1909, and began carrying streetcars in 1909 and New York City Subway trains in 1915. The eastern upper-deck roadway was installed in 1922. After streetcars stopped running in 1929, the western upper roadway was finished two years later. The uneven weight of subway trains crossing the Manhattan Bridge caused it to tilt to one side, necessitating an extensive reconstruction between 1982 and 2004. The Manhattan Bridge was the first suspension bridge to use a Warren truss in its design. It has a main span of 1,470 ft between two 350-foot suspension towers. The deck carries seven vehicular lanes, four on an upper level and three on a lower level, as well as four subway tracks, two each flanking the lower-level roadway. The span is carried by four main cables, which travel between masonry anchorages at either side of the bridge, and 1,400 vertical suspender cables. Carrere and Hastings designed ornamental plazas at both ends of the bridge, including an arch and colonnade in Manhattan that is a New York City designated landmark. The bridge's use of light trusses influenced the design of other long suspension bridges in the early 20th century. The bridge was the last of the three suspension spans built across the lower East River, following the Brooklyn and Williamsburg bridges. After the City of Greater New York was formed in 1898, the administration of mayor Robert Anderson Van Wyck formed a plan for what became the Manhattan Bridge; these plans were repeatedly revised and were not finalized until after George B. McClellan Jr. became mayor in 1901.