Berkley–Dighton Bridge

The third Berkley–Dighton Bridge was a paved one-lane swing-span bridge connecting the towns of Berkley and Dighton, Massachusetts. Built in 1896, it was the third at that location, and was demolished in September and October 2010.Bridges at this location are the only crossing over the Taunton River between the Veterans Memorial Bridge in Fall River and the Weir Street Bridge in Taunton.HistoryThe first bridge at the site was built in 1801. There was no bridge on the site from 1853 to 1873.The third bridge was dedicated in 1896 with Luther Dean as the engineer, substructure built by Beattie and Wilcox of Fall River, Massachusetts, and superstructure built by R.F. Hawkins of Springfield, Massachusetts.At one time, the bridge had two traffic lanes. However, the deterioration of the structure reduced the bridge's weight-bearing capacity, and traffic flow was restricted to one lane. Traffic over the bridge was controlled by traffic signals on each side, which alternately allowed eastbound and westbound traffic to use the single lane. The road approaching the bridge from Dighton (eastbound) is known as Center Street; approaching from Berkley (westbound) it is known as Elm Street.The 1896 bridge was 21.3ft wide, and stood seven feet above mean high tide. It had a posted weight limit of 3ST at the end of its useful life.