I-20 Mississippi River Bridge - Vicksburg, Mississippi
Posted by: 
misfitt
N 32° 18.854 W 090° 54.367
15S E 697119 N 3577192
This bridge crosses the Mississippi River, the border between Louisiana and Mississippi, and is a major cross country artery connection across the southern part of the United States.
Waymark Code: WM2YWK
Location: Mississippi, United States
Date Posted: 01/12/2008
Views: 154
This is a four-lane through truss bridge the only vehicular crossing for over 60-miles to the south to Vidalia, Louisiana\Natchez, Mississippi and over 80-miles to the north at Lake Village, Louisiana.
Its Length: 12,974 Feet Overall, 870 Foot Longest Clear Span; Date Built: Opened February 14, 1973, has around 30,000 vehicle count a day.
This bridge in Vicksburg was built as part of the I-20 project. Due to the configuration of the river and the existing rail/highway bridge, the I-20 bridge had to be built either right next to the existing bridge, or it would need to be at least a mile and a half downstream. The decision was to build next to the old bridge. This forced a key design element in that the piers had to match up between the bridges to facilitate navigation.
While the two bridges look similar, the new bridge has a simpler design based on fewer but heavier structural members.
It was noted that the Old Vicksburg Bridge suffered an event where the ground under two piers moved shortly after construction. The old bridge was able to survive that incident. As a result, engineers were watching the new bridge for signs of similar movement. In the two year period from March 2000 to March 2002, the eastern two piers of this new bridge moved 4 inches laterally. A consulting engineering firm was brought in to look at the situation. They discovered an active fault running along the river near the east bank. It will be interesting to see how this turns out in the future.
Parking Coordinates:: N 32° 18.695 W 090° 53.995
Date Built: 02/14/1973
Length of Span:
12,974 Feet Overall
www:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicksburg_Bridge
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Visit Instructions:
Log your find with a picture of the bridge with yourself or your GPS in the foreground. This shot does not have to be taken "on" the bridge. The shot should show the "truss" structure of the bridge as well.