Jefferson City Bridge

The Jefferson City Bridge is the name for two continuous through arch truss bridges over the Missouri River at Jefferson City, Missouri, over which U.S. Route 54 (US 54) and US 63 travel between Cole County, Missouri and Callaway County, Missouri.Southbound bridgeThe southbound bridge opened in August 1955. Its main span is 195m and has a total length of 942.7m and a deck width of 11.5m and vertical clearance of 11.5m.Northbound bridgeThe northbound bridge opened in 1991. Its main span is 181.5m with a total length of 952.3m. The deck width is 14.3m and it has vertical clearance of 4.9m.The northbound bridge has a cantilevered bicycle and pedestrian lane, opened in April 2011. It is used in both directions for river viewing and access to the Katy Trail State Park. A city-maintained extension of the Katy (following a former KATY railroad spur) connects to the North Jefferson trailhead.1896 BridgeThe original bridge was built in 1896 and had three spans and was downstream of the current bridge. It had a single column in the middle of the river that rotated 90° to allow boat traffic to pass (the rotation could disrupt traffic for 45 minutes). The bridge was torn down in 1958. The main span was 134.1m. The diameter of the pivot pier was 6.7m. The pillars at the south entrance to the bridge are still in place, now a part of Rotary Park, overlooking the river at the end of Bolivar Street.