Ironton-Russell Bridge

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Ironton-Russell Bridge

Carries	2 lanes
Crosses	Ohio River
Locale	Ironton, Ohio and Russell, Kentucky
Maintained by	Ohio Department of Transportation
Design	Cantilever bridge
Opening date	1922
Toll	Former

The Ironton-Russell Bridge opened in 1922 as the first highway bridge along the Ohio River between Parkersburg, West Virginia and Cincinnati, Ohio ^[1]. Soon, the Ironton-Russell bridge was followed by numerous others at Ashland, Portsmouth, and Huntington. This light-blue cantilever bridge carries two lanes of traffic and a narrow sidewalk.

In 2000, the Ohio Department of Transportation released a report recommended the replacement of the then 78 year old span. The bridge was retrofitted in the 1970s with strengthening beams and plates. Later inspection of the bridge revealed that these plates had been been welded to the bridge using techniques that violated the bridge welding codes and reduced the fatigue strength of primary load members. As a result of these findings, ODOT added reinforcements to some vertical members to improve structural redundancy.

The bridge will still be forced to close when temperatures approach -5 degrees Fahrenheit due to the brittle nature of the steel used. Continuous monitoring is routine during temperatures below freezing to check for any cracking in the substructure of the span.

One of the replacements considered was a three-lane single-tower cable suspension bridge. The final design was chosen in January 2003, however, the high costs of constructing the bridge became apparent when costs for the new bridge came in at $110 million, well over the original estimated cost. The sharp rise was attributed to the dramatic increase in construction costs partially blamed on Hurricane Katrina, which increased the cost of concrete materials and items derived from petroleum products. The bridge has been redesigned with two-towers and has been reduced from three lanes to two.