Videos on YouTube show that the approach spans were demolished, but these pictures suggest that the truss spans were carefully dismantled and set on the shore. Gomdot was offering to give the bridge away and relocate it for the new owners if a suitable proposal was received, but I never heard any news on this offer.
Why replace it? Here are some of the reasons given (http://www.greenvillebridge.com/2a_1940.htm)
-Total roadway width is 24 feet with no shoulders.
-An overall sufficiency rating of 47.5 from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) makes the bridge eligible for replacement funding.
-The sharp vertical crest of the bridge reduces sight distance far below current criteria required by the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
-The location of the bridge makes it highly prone to marine vessel collisions.
Another reason, not openly discussed is politics: some Mississippi politicians wanted a new bridge and pushed to have the new one built.
Good question!
WHY WOULD SOMEONE WANT TO DEMOLITION SOMETHING SO BEAUTIFUL? IT IS SO SAD SO SO SAD.
Has a date been set for its demise? I don't want to be there for it, but if I get the chance I'd like to go see it one more time since it's only five hours away.
I hope the demolition contractors spare historic items like the builders' plaques. Noting, despite some changes over the years, both new and old bridges were built by the same firm. The new bridge looks sweepingly sleek.
Yes, it is downstream. I just visited this bridge on January 1 and took a few pictures. It's rather interesting how the main span is flat. Most major river bridges I've been over have at least a slight arch to them, unless they come off a bluff. I've always been a fan of these big through-trusses.
Here's the picture I use as a Windows desktop:
Isn't the new bridge a half=mile DOWNSTREAM from the old one????????????????
This bridge will be demolished when the new bridge and its aproaches are complete. Probably some time next year.
The 1940 Benjamin Humphreys Bridge will be coming down in 2008 or 2009 and is replaced to a new bridge slightly upstream.
The reason it was replaced was because the Corps of Engineers wanted it gone. It was a major headache for marine traffic. The new bridge was built so not to have the same problems.
The region would have been better served from a vehicular perspective of leaving it in place and building a new bridge on the north side of Greenville.
But one would say, they are getting both. Are they? Time will tell.