1896-1969+1977 US-30 Chester (WV) Bridge over Ohio River at East Liverpool, OH

(Archived Bridge Hunter; B&T; Satellite) Jennings Randolph Bridge

"The Jennings Randolph Bridge was constructed after the Chester Bridge was closed down on May 14, 1969." The original cost was estimated as $14m. In the end, it cost $47m, and the end was not until 1977. "It is the largest truss bridge in North America." [LaurelHollowPark]

Street View, Oct 2022

Street View, Oct 2022

Street View, Aug 2019

I noticed this dredging operation while I was looking for street views of the bridge.

Street View, Oct 2022

I dug deeper into the claim in some of the sources that it is "the largest truss bridge in North America" I had noticed that the truss looked long, but I have been unable to find a reference that provides a length. (I miss Bridge Hunter) By "largest," I assume they mean longest. Using Google Maps, I estimate the length is about 220m (722'). (The scale on my Google maps changed from feet to meters, but I don't know why.) If it is the longest, then it is longer by just a few feet because the main span of the P&I Bridge is 720'. (Update: the span is 745' (227m) long. [I found an archived copy of Bridge Hunter.]

The tri-state area not having a major bridge for 8.5 years was good practice for an outage of this bridge from Dec 11, 2023 to Jan 8, 2024. "The bridge was closed on Dec. 11 after a federally mandated inspection discovered cracking in two welds on the steel bridge structure. The cracks were not visible to the naked eye, but the WVDOH, in an abundance of caution, decided to close the bridge while repairs were completed." [wtov9] This appears to be another example of "abundance of caution" being an admission by those in charge of risk decisions that they don't know how to do their job.

"The Jennings Randolph Bridge was built in 1977 using T-1 steel. At the time, welded T-1 steel was common in bridge construction, but it was later discovered that cracks could develop in the welds joining the beams. Special testing on bridges made with T-1 steel has since been conducted on bridges all over the United States. It was during one of those tests that a few cracks were identified in welds on the Jennings Randolph Bridge. Bridge inspection consultant Modjeski & Masters identified 18 additional internal defects on welds on the bridge which have since been repaired." [TheIntelligencer]

"Similar [T-1 Steel] issues led to the closure of the Interstate 64 Sherman Minton Bridge in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2011 and the Interstate 40 Hernando de Soto Bridge in Memphis in 2021." [wvnews]

There are five bridges in WV made with T-1 steel, and this is the only one that required closure after an inspection. [WVDOT]

"Bridge inspection consultant Modjeski & Masters identified 18 additional internal defects on welds on the bridge that needed to be repaired before reopening the bridge. Those defects on the bridge have since been repaired." [WV_reopen]

WV crews cut holes in the bridge beams to allow the "contractors inside to inspect the welds from the inside out....Welding codes were amended in the 1990s, and all T-1 steel was required to pass inspection before leaving the factory." This article explains the "dogbone repair" that stops the spread of a crack. Some cracks used that repair while others drilled out the bad portions of the welds. [WV_repairs]

This is the bridge that took 8.5 years to replace:

Bridges & Tunnels
[It sounds like it was a good thing that the Silver Bridge collapse caused bridges to be inspected. The inspection found enough hidden problems such as broken wires and corrosion to cause the bridge to be closed.]

Bridges Now and Then posted
"The Chester Bridge under construction in 1896 from the East Liverpool side of the Ohio River looking toward the soon-to-be town of Chester, West Virginia. The ferry boat Ollie Neville was forced out of operation once the bridge was completed." (East Liverpool Historical Society)

1 of many photos of the 1896 bridge in LourelHollowPark_chester

"Chester Bridge with C.C. Thompson Pottery of East Liverpool, Ohio in the background.

Picture was taken in the early part of the 20th Century when flooding on the Ohio River was common."

The abutment on the WV side of the 1896 bridge has been preserved as a river overlook.

Street View, Nov 2021