Shopping for a fan of historic infrastructure this holiday season? The Washington State Department of Transportation has an offer for you: The State Route 508 South Fork Newaukum River Bridge is in need of a new home, and the rusty trusses can be yours free of charge. All WSDOT asks is that you move it on your own dime, which could end up costing tens of thousands of dollars, KGW.com reports.
The bridge was constructed in 1930, and sits about 75 miles south of Seattle. After supporting cars and trucks crossing the South Fork Newaukum River for decades, the rusted-through structure was deemed unfit for traffic in 2015. But the Washington government wants to avoid demolishing this piece of history if possible. It’s one of just 13 pony truss bridges left on public roads in the state, and it’s eligible for historic listing under the National Historic Preservation Act. That means whoever snatches it up will be required to reuse the trusses “in a way that preserves historic relevance.”
The deal doesn’t include the entirety of the bridge—just the 90-foot steel trusses without the deck or substructure. Even so, WSDOT believes someone out there can get some good use out of them. “We’re hoping someone can repurpose it at [sic] a golf course, on a hiking trail, or even see its beauty as garden art,” they write on the WSDOT blog.
Whether or not they find someone to take the historic hunk of infrastructure, a new bridge is planned to take its place in 2018. If you’re interested in saving the bridge from becoming scrap metal, you can contact WSDOT here.
[h/t KGW Portland]
November 30, 2016 – 12:30pm