Before all the Christmas festivities began, there was time, and sun, and the opportunity to get on the bike. So I decided to ride out over the bridge to take a closer look at some of the issues before work began. The planned January closing date has been pushed back to allow time for more study, but I was also anxious to see the progress made to the walkway along the river in Oregon City.
Most all the walkway railings are cracked.
In many places the concrete is just gone.
There is cabling stretched around some of the pillars.
All the pillars and arches have cracks in the concrete.
This is actually just the covering over the underlying steel, so it may not be as dangerous as it first appears, but still…..
The bridge is tired, worn and dirty but it remains a visually pleasing structure.
On closer look you can see that work to gain access has begun underneath.