Finished Product
Move completed, bridge is reopened.
Photo taken by Steve Conro in July 2012
BH Photo #234809
And here's the final proof
Ceee-le-BRAAAA-tionnn!! WOO-HOO!!!
Illinois is going for SHOCK value here!.......
A UCEB going down at the expense of a truss bridge!!!!
One other thing, this positive story is so unbelievable I thought it might be nice to share the proof. Here is a link to the plans for this project from the IDOT website. http://eplan.dot.il.gov/desenv/061110/87380-306/PLANS/pl8733... Most of the plan sheets involving the truss are toward the end of the file.
This news is full of win.
HA! I love it!! This is not only wonderful to see, but also encouraging, as hopefully many more roadway agencies will see what is being done here and see for themselves that historic truss bridge rehabilitation is really the best solution for a situation like this, because all sides win! We who highly value these beautiful and historic bridges get to see one here replace a nasty concrete UCEB that is nearly 50 years NEWER!! Also, the side that wants a safe crossing is getting just that--a newly rehabilitated, safe span that, with proper care and maintenance, will be around for another century for everyone to enjoy!
In a state that preserves so few of its rural historic truss bridges, I was surprised and extremely happy to find a unique and wonderful preservation solution in the works here. This ugly and inferior 1979 concrete bridge will be demolished and replaced with a higher quality bridge... a rehabilitated 1931 historic Pratt truss: http://www.bridgehunter.com/il/bureau/6324410738/.
I thought it sort of misleading that no mention of original construction date. New plaque reads built in 2011.