The Liberty Bend Bridge is the common name for the two
continuous truss bridge
A continuous truss bridge is a truss bridge which extends without hinges or joints across three or more supports. A continuous truss bridge may use less material than a series of simple trusses because a continuous truss distributes live loads ...
s on
Route 291 over the
Missouri River in
Sugar Creek,
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Although the bridges cross over the Missouri River, they do not cross the county line. When the Missouri River was rerouted in 1949, it cut across the northern part of Jackson County, Missouri. This left part of the county north of the river, which is known as River Bend. The original Liberty Bend Bridge was located about two miles to the north, which then crossed over into
Clay County, Missouri
Clay County is located in the U.S. state of Missouri and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 253,335, making it the fifth-most populous county in Missouri. Its county seat is Libe ...
.
The main span length is 460.1 feet and the total length is 1,883.3 feet. Vertical clearance is 16.5 feet.
History
The original Liberty Bend Bridge was built in 1927 and was dismantled in 1973. After the new river channel was cut and the new bridge built over it in 1949, the old bridge continued to carry traffic from the bottoms up to Arsenal Hill, spanning the old riverbed and also crossing the railroad tracks. The then 291, now Southview Dr, continued north. In the early 1970s, the new four-lane divided 291 was built along the east side of the old highway, and the new Independence-Liberty Bridge (the pair of bridges now carrying 291 across the railroad) was built alongside the old Liberty Bend Bridge. It was then, that the old bridge was torn down.
Northbound
The northbound bridge was built 1949 (with the rerouting, and new channel of the Missouri River) and rehabilitated 1986. With the completion of the new bridge (southbound), all traffic was moved over to the new span. Work immediately began on the northbound bridge during the years 2001–05. The bridge was rehabilitated once again, and deck was completely removed and replaced. The northbound bridge reopened in 2005.
The northbound deck is 23.9 feet wide.
Southbound
The southbound bridge was started in 1996, completed and opened in 2001 with a deck width of 40 feet.
July 2009 Emergency Closure
On July 7, 2009, a routine inspection revealed serious problems with the northbound bridge.
MoDOT
The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT, ) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Missouri under the guidance of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. MoDOT designs, ...
immediately closed the span indefinitely. In a few days a temporary (permanent/paved) crossover was constructed, allowing the rerouting of northbound traffic to share the southbound bridge while repairs were completed. The span opened for traffic in September 2009.
[http://libertytribune.com/200907074553/breaking-news/breaking-news/northbound-missouri-highway-291-bridge-closed.html]
See also
*
List of crossings of the Missouri River
This is a list of bridges and other crossings of the Missouri River from the Mississippi River upstream to its source(s).
Crossings
See also
* List of crossings of the Upper Mississippi River
* List of crossings of the Lower Mississippi Ri ...
References
Bridgehunter.com profile
{{coord, 39, 10, 4.4, N, 94, 23, 42.0, W, type:landmark, display=title
Bridges in Kansas City, Missouri
Bridges completed in 1949
Bridges completed in 2001
Buildings and structures in Clay County, Missouri
Buildings and structures in Jackson County, Missouri
Road bridges in Missouri
U.S. Route 71
Steel bridges in the United States