It took four years but the Mississippi bridge in Burlington, Iowa is open
The old bridge was built in 1868.
Thursday, the BNSF railway held a public ceremony to commemorate the finished project.
Celebrations surround many major construction projects. And this bridge was no small one. 150 million dollars. Millions of pounds of steel.
"The last one lasted 115 years, I would hope this one will last 200 years," says BNSF CEO Matt Rose.
The completed project begins a new chapter in the long story of Burlington's hometown railroad. A story spanning generations.
"It kept my belly from touching my backbone and took care of my family," says retired machinist Oran Wagler.
He worked for the railroad for 45 years. And worked alongside the man who created gears for the now replaced swing span.
"Meredith was a dang good machinist when it came to doing machine work," says Wagler.
And those steel ribbons brought more than jobs to Burlington. It brought customers to the city's factories.
"The railroad coming through helped all the other manufacturing entities in town for shipping and bringing materials to them," says Deb Olson, Des Moines County Historical Society Secretary.
Olson has looked at the bridge for years. Her late husband worked for the railroad when it's locomotive shops were here.Sshe says the tracks define this city.
"It's been a very important part of our history."
The Burlington bridge is one of 13-thousand in the BNSF's entire rail network. But Burlington's bridge holds one particular honor.
It's the bridge connecting the Burlington, Northern, Santa Fe name together.
