The General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge, more commonly known locally as the "

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

Bridge", consists of dual parallel tied through arches of

weathering steel Weathering steel, often referred to by the genericised trademark COR-TEN steel and sometimes written without the hyphen as corten steel, is a group of steel alloys which were developed to eliminate the need for painting, and form a stable rus ...

and beam viaducts of concrete that form one continuous span carrying four lanes of

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

across the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta northeast of the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

city of

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...

. Built from 1978 to 1980, it spans a distance of over the delta, making it, along with the

Jubilee Parkway The Jubilee Parkway is a pair of parallel concrete viaduct bridges that carry Interstate 10 across Mobile Bay from the George Wallace Tunnel on Blakeley Island in Mobile, Alabama eastbound to Spanish Fort/Daphne, Alabama. The bridges are simila ...

across

Mobile Bay Mobile Bay ( ) is a shallow inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. The ...

to its south, among the longest bridges in the nation. It was named in honor of Walter K. Wilson, a Chief of Engineers with the

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

and long-term resident of Mobile. He was credited with being one of the first people recognizing the need to construct a high-level bridge on Interstate 65 over the Mobile River that would not impede waterway development. The state of

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

named the bridge in his honor after completion of construction in 1978.

Dolly Parton Bridge

The bridge has red warning lights atop the parallel support arches which, when combined with the shape of the supporting arches when approached from certain directions, have caused the bridge to gain the nickname "

Bridge".

May 22, 2014 fire

On May 22, 2014 the bridge suffered damage in the northbound portion due to extreme heat caused following an accident involving two

semi-trailer truck A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer ...

s. The accident occurred approximately from the arch portion of the bridge. One truck carrying petroleum barrels, stopped due to a previous accident, was rear ended by another truck, with an explosion ensuing. The driver of the tractor which impacted the trailer was killed. The subsequent fire and extreme heat generated caused significant damage to the concrete deck. The bridge was temporarily closed for two days and then reopened to one lane of northbound traffic. The Alabama Department of Transportation estimated it would take several months to replace the top 8 inches of the concrete deck over an unspecified area of the damaged bridge. The two northbound lanes were completely closed during construction, with the two southbound lanes divided into one southbound and one northbound lane.

References

{{reflist Transportation buildings and structures in Baldwin County, Alabama Bridges in Mobile County, Alabama Bridges completed in 1978 Bridges over the Mobile River Concrete bridges in the United States Tied arch bridges in the United States Road bridges in Alabama Interstate 65 Bridges on the Interstate Highway System Weathering steel Through arch bridges in the United States

Dolly Parton Bridge

May 22, 2014 fire

See also

References