Pony Bridge in western Oklahoma to close on Oct. 31 for at least two years

The landmark Pony Bridge near Bridgeport, Oklahoma, will be closed to traffic for at least two years next Monday as it undergoes extensive improvements that will preserve it distinctive trusses.

Oklahoma Route 66 Association President Rhys Martin announced the imminent closure in an email Friday:

We have known this day is coming for a long time now, and it’s finally here. The Pony Bridge across the Canadian River near Bridgeport, Oklahoma will be closing to traffic on Monday, October 31st. The rebuild project is currently expected to take roughly two years to complete  (weather permitting) and Route 66 travel in the area will require a detour. If you’d like to drive across the bridge one more time in its original form, we encourage you to do so as soon as possible.

If you are unaware of this project, here are the basic details: the iconic yellow trusses will be removed and rehabilitated while the deck is demolished. The existing piers will remain and a new deck (four feet wider but concrete to remain consistent with the original materials) will be built. The trusses will then be re-attached to the bridge; although they will no longer be load-bearing, it will maintain the visual aesthetic that the bridge is known for. Additionally, ODOT is building a turn-out on the northwest side of the bridge to allow for safe parking, photography, and some interpretive panels so that travelers can learn about the history of the area. More information is available here.

This is going to be a long process but the plan is to have the new bridge completed and open in plenty of time for the Centennial in 2026. Previous proposals had included demolishing the entire bridge or bypassing it. This solution, which also received a $22 million federal grant, will continue to allow people to drive over this iconic spot with minor changes to the experience. Another ODOT project along Route 66, the Captain Creek Bridge in Wellston, employed similar methods during a rebuild and is a good example of what the finished results may look like.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation made the initial announcement of the $35 million project in September 2020. It was scheduled to begin in early 2022 but was delayed about six months, enabling Route 66 travelers to drive on it during the busy summer season.

The Pony Bridge, aka the William H. Murray Bridge, remains one of Route 66’s most iconic spans. Built in 1934, it stretches more than 3,900 feet over the South Canadian River and consists of 38 yellow “pony” trusses, hence its nickname.

The bridge appears in the 1939 Oscar-winning film “The Grapes of Wrath.” In 2016, the bridge appeared on Preservation Oklahoma’s Most Endangered Historic Places list.

(Image of the Pony Bridge by Rhys Martin of Cloudless Lens Photography, courtesy of the Route 66 Road Ahead Partnership)