| Discovery Bridge | |
|---|---|
 Discovery Bridge at night | |
| Coordinates | 42°51′54.35″N 97°23′49.12″W / 42.8650972°N 97.3969778°W / 42.8650972; -97.3969778 |
| Carries | 4 lanes on  US 81 |
| Crosses | Missouri River |
| Locale | Yankton, South Dakota / Cedar County, Nebraska |
| Official name | Discovery Bridge |
| Maintained by | South Dakota Department of Transportation and Nebraska Department of Transportation |
| Characteristics | |
| Width | 74 feet |
| Longest span | 1590 feet |
| History | |
| Opened | October 11, 2008 |
| Location | |
The Discovery Bridge is a bridge that carries US Route 81 across the Missouri River from the Nebraska border to the South Dakota border. The Discovery Bridge connects Yankton, South Dakota, with rural Cedar County, Nebraska. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was on October 11, 2008, a year ahead of schedule. During the ceremony John McAuliffe and Kevin Brown inadvertently cut the ribbon prior to photographers being in place and thus there is no commemorative photo. The bridge crosses over the Missouri National Recreational River, a Federally-protected Wild & Scenic River, managed by the National Park Service
The Yankton SD Chamber of Commerce held a public contest to name the new bridge. The winning nomination would be the first public person to cross the bridge in a car the day of the bridge dedication.
More than 300 names were submitted. The public was then asked to vote their choice from 10 finalists.
The Discovery Bridge was the winning name submitted by David Spencer of Yankton, SD. The name is a reference to the Lewis and Clark expedition which was called the Corps of Discovery.
History
Construction began on the Discovery Bridge in June 2007. The bridge then opened on October 11, 2008, which was exactly 84 years after the dedication of the Meridian Highway Bridge. Now completed, the Discovery Bridge serves as a replacement for the Meridian Highway Bridge, which is about 1,000 feet (300 m) downstream.
The bridge was a finalist in the 2009 America's Transportation Awards for "representing the best in innovative management, accountability and timeliness".
See also
Transport portal
Engineering portal- List of crossings of the Missouri River
- Missouri River
- Missouri National Recreational River
- Gavins Point Dam
References
- City of Yankton, SD Discovery Bridge and webcam Archived 2010-10-16 at the Wayback Machine
- Nebraska Department of Roads Archived June 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- Vote for America's Best Transportation Project Archived 2009-09-12 at the Wayback Machine
- Two States Trim Time and Costs on New Bridge: Nebraska Department of Roads Yankton Bridge Project Archived September 14, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
External links
| Crossings of the Missouri River | ||||
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- Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System
- Road bridges in Nebraska
- Bridges over the Missouri River
- Buildings and structures in Cedar County, Nebraska
- Buildings and structures in Yankton, South Dakota
- Road bridges in South Dakota
- U.S. Route 81
- Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States
- Midwestern United States bridge (structure) stubs
- Nebraska building and structure stubs
- South Dakota building and structure stubs