History
The original bridge first opened on April 1, 1872, under the name Newport and Cincinnati Bridge, and was Cincinnati's first railroad bridge spanning the Ohio River. [2] The bridge piers were built with stone from Adams County, Ohio. [3]
In 1986, a major reconstruction for the bridge was started. In involved constructing two new streetcar and carriage decks, as well as adding a rebuilding the existing truss into a Pennsylvania prat truss. This was competed in 1987, and done to modernize the bridge, despite only being 25 years old, it had already been rendered obsolete with the increased weight of trains. [4] [5]
In 1904, the bridge was renamed the L&N (Louisville and Nashville) Railroad Bridge. At this point the bridges deck was paved with asphalt to allow for improved usage. [4]
After the opening of the Dixie Terminal’s lower level on November 27, 1921, the CN&C’s streetcar tracks were reconfigured to cross the Central bridge, at this point the bridge was restricted to emergency use only. [4]
In 1928, the Kentucky Highway Department made pans to purchase the vehicular and streetcar sections of the Bridge. This transaction was met with resistance as it was the most profitable, though on November 15, 1935, these parts of the bridge were sold off. [4]
On November 11, 1941, at 2 p.m, tolls were abolished from the crossing after the bounds had been paid off. An hour later, a dedicated of the now free bridge was held. [4]
On July 3, 1950, the bridges streetcar tracks was closed. They cantilevered one was dismantled, and the truss one was replaced by a sidewalk. [4]
In 1956, a loop ramp onto second street was opened to traffic. Also around this time, the railroad tracks were converted to go u=in one direction at peck travel times in the mornigs and evenings. [4]
In 1971, the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (SCL) purchased the remainder of the L&N shares it did not already own, and the L&N became a subsidiary. [4]
In 1980 the vehicular/pedestrian side was repainted and redecked. [4]
SCL absorbed the L&N entirely in 1982 with the newly merged company known as Family Lines. [4]
At the end of June 1984, the bridge's tracks were abandoned. In 1986, the SCL formally merged with the Chessie System, which became CSX Transportation (CSX). At this point, work began on demolishing the north approach and removing the train deck, this was all competed in 1987. [4]
In 2000, the Newport approach was partially demolished with the opening of a new parking garage next to it. [6]
In October 2001, the vehicular lanes were permanently closed, this was after over a decade of urban decay. At this pint, the city of Newport, Kentucky, and Southbank Partners, a regional economic development organization, used $4 million in state funds to restore the bridge. When it was time to decide on what color to paint it, a variety of options were explored. Computer-generated images of the bridge were shown to participants in more than a dozen focus groups, all of whom picked the color purple as a top choice. It was soon nicknamed the "Purple People Bridge" by area residents. This project was competed in May 2003. Since this rehab the bridge has been maintained by The Purple People Bridge Company, which maintains public access for pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
In 2006, it became possible for the public to cross the bridge via its superstructure, though only while wearing appropriate safety gear. There are similar bridge climb experiences in Australia and New Zealand. Citing lack of funds and low attendance, the Purple People Bridge Climb was discontinued on May 23, 2007. [7]
In 2022, the Newport Southbank Bridge was officially renamed the "Purple People Bridge", at which point parts of the truss was also repainted purple.
In 2024, the bridge was closed after parts of its pier fell off. nobody was killed or injured in the accidenet. [8]
