Montopolis Bridge
Viewed from the north in 2013
Coordinates30°14′44″N 97°41′29″W / 30.24542°N 97.69136°W / 30.24542; -97.69136
CarriesBicycle and pedestrian crossing (formerly US 183 frontage road)
CrossesColorado River
LocaleAustin, Texas
OwnerState of Texas
ID number142270026501034
Characteristics
DesignParker through truss
MaterialSteel
Total length1,221 feet (372 m)
Width24 feet (7.3 m)
Longest span200 feet (61 m)
No. of spans9
Clearance above19 feet (5.8 m)
No. of lanes2
History
DesignerTexas Highway Department
Constructed byVincennes Steel Corporation
Construction startFebruary 15, 1937
Construction cost$232,000
OpenedFebruary 11, 1938 (1938-February-11)
Montopolis Bridge
Montopolis Bridge is located in Texas
Montopolis Bridge
Montopolis Bridge is located in the United States
Montopolis Bridge
Coordinates30°14′44″N 97°41′29″W / 30.24556°N 97.69139°W / 30.24556; -97.69139
Arealess than 1 acre (0.40 ha)
MPSHistoric Bridges of Texas MPS
NRHP reference No.96001118[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 10, 1996

The Montopolis Bridge is a historic Parker through truss bridge in Austin, Texas. It is located in the Montopolis neighborhood where a bicycle and pedestrian walkway crosses the Colorado River in southeastern Travis County. The bridge consists of five 200-foot Parker through truss spans and four 52-foot steel I-beam approach spans resting on reinforced concrete abutments. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 10, 1996.[2]

History

On June 15, 1935, the city of Austin suffered a devastating flood along the Colorado River. The original Montopolis bridge, built by Travis County in the late 1880s, was one of five bridges washed away by the flood. The Texas Highway Department designed the current bridge and requested federal emergency relief funds from the Bureau of Public Roads to rebuild it.[3] Work on the bridge began on February 15, 1937. The bridge was completed on February 11, 1938, by Vincennes Steel Corporation under contract to the Highway Department at a cost of nearly $232,000 (equivalent to $4,820,000 in 2022).[4]

The Montopolis Bridge remained in use until 2018 and, as one of the principal routes to the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport from Downtown Austin, was fairly busy. The southbound frontage of U.S. 183, Airport Boulevard and East 7th Street all merge at the north side of the bridge. In 2006, 29,200 vehicles crossed on average each day. The bridge was decommissioned for vehicular traffic on October 8, 2018,[5] and was subsequently converted to a bicycle and pedestrian bridge as part of the Bergstrom Expressway Project.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ↑ "Montopolis Bridge". Bridgehunter.com. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  3. ↑ Montopolis Bridge. Texas Historic Sites Atlas. Texas Historical Commission.
  4. ↑ "Montopolis Bridge". Find the Data. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  5. ↑ "Major Activity - 183 South". Archived from the original on October 14, 2018.
  6. ↑ Huber, Mary (October 16, 2019). "Montopolis Bridge in East Austin gets facelift before opening for hike-and-bike trail". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
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