"The width of the old bridges was not up to our current standards for a highway like SH 8," Texarkana Area Engineer Tommy Bruce said. "Our new bridge is going to be 44 feet wide, which includes two 12-foot lanes with 10-foot shoulders on each side. The previous bridges were 26 feet wide."
The new structure replaces two smaller bridges that were built back in the 1950s.
"We're so proud to open this new bridge that is longer, taller, and wider than the former bridges," Atlanta District Engineer Rebecca Wells said. "Our ribbon cutting ceremony is a celebration of new infrastructure that is safer for the traveling public."
The contractor for the $37.7 million project is Longview Bridge and Road.
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"What we have left to do is remove the existing roadway and the two existing bridge structures," said Casey Johnson, Longview Bridge and Road President. "There's a little bit of tie-in work as far as the concrete paving on either end of the bridge at the approaches and several cubic yards of rock riprap to put in for slope protection. And, that will pretty well complete the project."
Members of the community along with officials from both counties joined in the ribbon cutting ceremony, which was held on the old roadway with the new bridge in the background.
"I know I'm excited to drive on the new bridge, and I know that people who drive this route everyday are," Bruce said.
