View Information About HSR Ratings
With a width of 137 feet, and a length of only 35 feet, this bridge is as wide as many bridges are long and as long as those same bridges might be wide. Aside from this oddity, the bridge itself is not very significant, but it does offer an interesting look into the history of the highway it serves.
Randy Mulder provided the following discussion about this bridge and the highway:
This route from Grand Rapids to Holland has been a state highway since the 1920's, originally as M-51 and then as M-21. In the 1950's an additional separate 2-lane surface was built to create a 4-lane divided route from Grandville to Zeeland, and this bridge was obviously built in preparation to carry the road through Hudsonville. However, a service road was also needed in town to access businesses, so this bridge had 3 2-lane roads crossing it (from underneath, it looks like 3 10-girder bridges side-by-side). In 1974, the I-196 freeway bypassed Hudsonville, and the M-21 designation was dropped. However, the county didn't want to take over the road, especially since some of the old road (current westbound lanes) was in bad shape (you can easily tell if you drive it- the 1950's side was designed to freeway grades and shoulders, while the other side is a roller-coaster that occasionally floods). The state kept control, and with increasing local traffic began to upgrade some of the busier intersections to indirect turns, one of which required taking over part of a section of the service road for a turning area. This made 1/3 of this bridge unnecessary, so now there is a grassy strip on either side of the bridge separating the sidewalk on the south from the highway. In 2007 MDOT designated this as M-121, and this year began upgrading the entire stretch to current specifications, which explains the shiny Armco railing covering the north R4 railing of the bridge. The south side, however, is so far from traffic that it escaped this fate, and remains in very good shape
Coordinates (Latitude, Longitude):
Search For Additional Bridge Listings:
Bridgehunter.com: View listed bridges within 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) of this bridge.
Bridgehunter.com: View listed bridges within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of this bridge.
Additional Maps:
Google Streetview (If Available)
GeoHack (Additional Links and Coordinates)
Apple Maps (Via DuckDuckGo Search)
Apple Maps (Apple devices only)
Android: Open Location In Your Map or GPS App
Flickr Gallery (Find Nearby Photos)
Wikimedia Commons (Find Nearby Photos)
Directions Via Sygic For Android
Directions Via Sygic For iOS and Android Dolphin Browser
USGS National Map (United States Only)
Historical USGS Topo Maps (United States Only)
Historic Aerials (United States Only)
CalTopo Maps (United States Only)
© Copyright 2003-2024, HistoricBridges.org. All Rights Reserved. Disclaimer: HistoricBridges.org is a volunteer group of private citizens. HistoricBridges.org is NOT a government agency, does not represent or work with any governmental agencies, nor is it in any way associated with any government agency or any non-profit organization. While we strive for accuracy in our factual content, HistoricBridges.org offers no guarantee of accuracy. Information is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. Information could include technical inaccuracies or errors of omission. Opinions and commentary are the opinions of the respective HistoricBridges.org member who made them and do not necessarily represent the views of anyone else, including any outside photographers whose images may appear on the page in which the commentary appears. HistoricBridges.org does not bear any responsibility for any consequences resulting from the use of this or any other HistoricBridges.org information. Owners and users of bridges have the responsibility of correctly following all applicable laws, rules, and regulations, regardless of any HistoricBridges.org information.
