Bismarck, Remember When The Memorial Bridge Was A Grate Bridge?
As a Minot kid, I always enjoyed coming down to BisMan to take a trip across the truss bridge that was the Memorial Bridge between Bismarck and Mandan. There was no asphalt across the roadway just a hum of the metal grating.
Seems South Dakota, and our neighbors in Mobridge have a significant situation with their "singing bridge". Built in 1963, the concrete cover of the Mo-bridge put out a "singing sound" when ya drove over it. Well, that bridge between Mobridge and Wakpala is significantly damaged. Anytime you cut off traffic across the river, you add an hour at least to your back and forth commute. So good news on February 25th...
The SDDOT designed and completed a temporary solution. A 20 ton weight restriction and 35 mph speed restriction are in place until a permanent fix is completed at a later date. Signage is on site to alert drivers to these restrictions.
I may not have experienced the metal grate fun of the Memorial Bridge as an adult, when I got here in 2001 it had been paved and was so much smoother...but still a terrifying two lane if you worked in a bar like I did back in the day. Imagine leaving a drunken Mandan bar you was working at, and heading across that bridge knowing that everyone coming towards you at 1 AM had just left that same kinda drunken Bismarck bar. I was glad to have a juggernaut of a car...if need be, I mighta just pushed you right off the bridge.
I was on-site when they blew up the Memorial Bridge and am still looking for film footage of the Bald Eagle flying over the crowd following the explosion. The four lane Liberty Memorial Bridge is an amazing upgrade. Curious if Mobridge doesn't consider going back to the beginning to create a permanent fix for their "singing bridge".
Granted it's not that old...but is it beyond a simple patch? We'll see when the contractors have a better look.
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