The Thomas Rukavina Memorial Bridge carries U.S. 53 over the Rouchleau Mine pit connecting Virginia, Minnesota with other cities to the south. U.S. 53 continues through Virginia to

International Falls International Falls (sometimes referred to as I-Falls) is a city in and the county seat of Koochiching County, Minnesota. The population was 5,802 at the time of the 2020 census. International Falls is located on the Rainy River directly acro ...

and Canada; International Falls is about north of Virginia. The bridge, opened in 2017, was named after Tom Rukavina in 2021 following his death in 2019. Rukavina was a state legislator from the

Iron Range The term Iron Range refers collectively or individually to a number of elongated iron-ore mining districts around Lake Superior in the United States and Canada. Much of the ore-bearing region lies alongside the range of granite hills formed by ...

At tall, it is the tallest bridge in Minnesota. This bridge carries a traffic volume of about 22,200 cars per day, making it one of the most-traveled highway segments on the

. The bridge also features a bike lane and pedestrian walkway that leads to trails connecting Gilbert and Virginia. The Mesabi Trail crosses the bridge. In 1960, the state of Minnesota and the mining companies in the area came to an agreement that allowed the construction of U.S. 53 across lands held by the mining company without the state paying anything for the land. The agreement stipulated that after 1987, the state would be responsible for the costs involved with moving the roadway to allow for mining after given advance notice by the mining companies. The two owners of the land notified MnDOT of their intent to mine the site in 2010 which gave the state until 2017 to move the roadway.

Cliffs Natural Resources Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., formerly Cliffs Natural Resources, is a Cleveland, Ohio-based company that specializes in the mining, beneficiation, and pelletizing of iron ore, as well as steelmaking, including stamping and tooling. It is the largest f ...

which had a nearby active mine, hope to begin mining the site by 2017. After evaluating several more expensive options that involved longer bridges or routing US 53 across an active mine pit, an alignment was selected that resulted in the highest bridge in Minnesota. A route on level ground away from the mining formation was identified as too disruptive to development patterns in the area. The entire project estimated to cost $220 million with $159 million for construction of the bridge and diverted roadway. The bridge crosses the

Rouchleau Mine The Rouchleau Mine is an abandoned open-pit mine within the Mesabi Iron Range at Virginia, Minnesota, United States. The mine, located on the east side of the city, is roughly long and wide; its deepest point is below its surface, making it one ...

pit. The water filled pit also serves as Virginia's water supply. The final cost was $230 million with $30 million coming from the federal government and the remaining from the state. To prevent the need to move the bridge in the future, the state purchased the mineral rights for the land beneath roadway for $15 million.

Major intersections nearby

Main intersections in a radius of the bridge. * MN-135

Minnesota State Highway 135 Minnesota State Highway 135 (MN 135) is a highway in northeast Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with U.S. Highway 53 in the city of Virginia and continues northeast to its northern terminus at its intersection with State Highway 1 in ...

- To Gilbert * MN-37

Minnesota State Highway 37 Minnesota State Highway 37 (MN 37) is a highway in northeast Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with U.S. 169 / State Highway 73 in Hibbing and continues east to its eastern terminus at its intersection with State Highway 135 in ...

- To Gilbert * US_169

U.S. Highway 169 - To Hibbing

Gallery

Virginia MN High Bridge Night Shot.jpg, Night Time Image of Thomas Rukavina Memorial Bridge Thomas Rukavina Memorial Bridge Sign.jpg, Thomas Rukavina Memorial Bridge Sign

References

External Links

*{{Citation, title=MnDOT {{! Hwy 53 bridge relocation project, 9/17, url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPH09BzVs8I, language=en, access-date=2021-09-01 2017 establishments in Minnesota Bridges completed in 2017 Bridges in Minnesota Beam bridges Road bridges in Minnesota