Rating:
5 votes

Blatnik Bridge

Douglas County, Wisconsin, and St. Louis County, Minnesota

Photos 

Oblique View

Photo taken by J.R. Manning in June 2006

BH Photo #112544

Map 

Street View 

Facts 

Overview
Steel through arch bridge over St. Louis Bay on I-535/US 53 between Duluth and Superior
Location
Duluth, Douglas County, Wisconsin, and St. Louis County, Minnesota
Status
Open to traffic
Future prospects
Slated for demolition and replacement in 2028.
History
Built 1961; rehabilitated 1994
Design
Steel through arch
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 600.1 ft.
Total length: 1,140.1 ft.
Deck width: 58.1 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 19.3 ft.
Also called
John A. Blatnik Bridge (official name)
High Bridge (original name)
Approximate latitude, longitude
+46.74667, -92.09917   (decimal degrees)
46°44'48" N, 92°05'57" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
15/568809/5177406 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Superior
Average daily traffic (as of 2015)
33,900
Inventory number
BH 34744 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of July 2017)
Overall condition: Fair
Superstructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 66 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com

Categories 

Arch (11,633)
Built 1961 (216)
Built during 1960s (1,930)
Doomed (1,078)
Douglas County, Wisconsin (30)
Duluth, Minnesota (60)
Have street view (25,841)
Minnesota (1,435)
Navigable waterway (2,094)
Open (38,681)
 Owned by state (15,315)
Span length 500-1000 feet (372)
St. Louis County, Minnesota (105)
State line crossing (797)
Steel through arch (209)
Suspended Deck Through Truss (18)
Total length 1000-2500 feet (1,759)
US 53 (4)
Wisconsin (1,403)

Update Log 

  • October 16, 2019: New photos from Ben Tate
  • March 18, 2019: Updated by Nathan Holth: This bridge is now doomed.
  • January 28, 2015: New photo from Luke
  • October 9, 2014: New photos from Max Koehn
  • March 19, 2011: New photos from Matthew Lohry
  • August 2, 2010: New Street View added by Jason Smith
  • June 5, 2008: Changed name
  • February 27, 2008: Updated by J.R. Manning: Added Minnesota Information

Related Bridges 

Sources 

  • J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
  • James Baughn - webmaster [at] bridgehunter [dot] com
  • Jason Smith - flensburg [dot] bridgehunter [dot] av [at] googlemail [dot] com
  • Matt Lohry
  • Max Koehn - mkoehn45 [at] gmail [dot] com
  • Luke
  • Nathan Holth
  • Ben Tate - benji5221 [at] yahoo [dot] com
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Comments 

Blatnik Bridge
Posted March 18, 2019, by Nathan Holth (webmaster [at] historicbridges [dot] org)

Doomed. https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/traffic-and-construct...

Blatnik Bridge
Posted August 9, 2017, by Joe Fishbein (jmfmando [at] gmail [dot] com)

Preliminary studies are under way for the eventual replacement of this bridge. A likely scenario involves keeping the girder approach spans and replacing the main truss span. No design concepts have been proposed yet. A detailed inspection and load rating of the approach spans is just getting started. Any replacement project will be at least 10 years down the road, but be forewarned!

Blatnik Bridge
Posted May 12, 2014, by Joe Fishbein (jmf [at] visi [dot] com)

The Blatnik Bridge underwent a major rehab project in 2012-2013, which included reinforcement of some gusset plates, new strip-seal and modular deck joints, repainting of the truss and approach spans and a new decorative lighting system. Repairs enabled the 40-ton load limit to be removed; the bridge is no longer posted.

Blatnik Bridge
Posted February 10, 2013, by Cap't Tom Mackay (Ret.) (oriskany65 [at] msn [dot] com)

The view to the right from the Blatnik Bridge is of Superior Bay.

Blatnik Bridge
Posted December 18, 2011, by Clark Vance (cvance [at] dogmail [dot] com)

See the related bridge just added.

Blatnik Bridge
Posted December 18, 2011, by Atmo

I find it a bit interesting that while a page exists for the Blatnik Bridge here, there's still nothing on the Bong Bridge just a bit farther south.