Bridge to Nowhere: It stood for 47 years and will be demolished in 26 hours
The “Bridge to Nowhere” is scheduled for demolition this weekend.
It is located over Interstate 10, just south of the Sunland Park exit, right next to the Buena Vista neighborhood.
Originally named the “Buena Vista Bridge,” it was built in 1969 and has stood for 47 years. It will take just 26 hours this weekend to bring it down.
To learn why the “Bridge to Nowhere” was built, click here.
“You protect it by putting about a foot or foot and a half of soil on top of the road,” TxDOT District Engineer Bob Bielek said, pointing to the first step in the demolition of the bridge. “You create a blanket, so anything falling down from the bridge lands in that soil and is protected from the surface.”
Bielek said the process is the same as it was two yeas ago when the Yandell overpass was demolished. “They’ll use a hydraulic ram,” Bielek said. “It looks like a big bird that pecks at the top of the deck and that breaks up the concrete deck.”
Then they’ll cut off the beams that are part of the steel structure, hook them up to a crane, and cut them off using a blow torch. “And then take the beam once its cut off and load it onto a truck and haul em off,” Bielek said.
Once the beams are down, the center columns are the last to go. “We take that hydraulic ram, weaken the column around the base, put a big chain on it, hook it up to a bulldozer and pull it over,” he said.
ABC-7 asked Beliek if there is a faster method to demolish the bridge, like a controlled explosion. ‘You don’t want that material going everywhere and its harder with a bridge to get it to implode, because of the type of structure that a bridge is,” Bielek answered.
This weekend’s plans call for not only bringing down the “Bridge to Nowhere,” but also possibly the other half of the Paisano bridge, which was delayed a couple of weekends ago. “We’re very confident we can get the Paisano Bridge down as well,” Bielek said.
“I was born and raised here still living here,” said 68-year-old Vietnam veteran Luis Jimenez, who has lived in the Buena Vista neighborhood, next to the “Bridge to Nowhere,” all his life.
Jimenez even built a deck in his backyard 20 years ago so he could watch the traffic go past. “Lot of memories here,” Jimenez said. “But the freeway has got to be done. I hope they hurry up and finish it.”
If the entire “Bridge to Nowhere” and other half of the Paisano bridge are able to be brought down this weekend, that will put the Go 10 project back on track.
On Sunday, August 14, the east and westbound lanes will be completely closed in between 3 a.m. Sunday and 5 a.m. Monday, August 15. The closure will be in effect in between the Sunland Park Overpass and the Executive Center Overpass during the demolition.
*DETOURS*
Eastbound traffic will take the Sunland Park Exit; left on Sunland Park Dr.; right on Mesa; and right onto Executive Center Blvd. Traffic will then re-enter I-10.
Westbound traffic will take the Executive Exit Ramp; right on Executive Center Blvd.; left on Mesa St.; and left onto Sunland Park Dr. Traffic will then re-enter I-10.
