"The Ugly Green Thing", Durham NC - Orphaned Bridges on Waymarking.com

When construction of the Durham Freeway (Highway NC-147) began in 1965, it physically divided several neighborhoods, and caused the destruction of many elegant old houses.

In an effort to mitigate the impact on citizens in the affected area, a 500-foot pedestrian bridge was included in the road project. One of the main reasons was to give access from the north side of the freeway to Burton Elementary School on the south side. This would allow children to walk to school with minimum exposure to traffic. For safety, the bridge was constructed with tall, solid-metal sides. That way, the roadway beneath was not visible, which put small children at ease.

Everyone who drives NC-147 sees the span, which resembles a giant "I-Beam" stretched over the highway. The color originally was a dull green. It is just east of the intersection of the freeway with Alston Avenue (Highway NC-55). Most motorists are unaware of the purpose of the bridge. That fact, plus the fading paint, has lead to the nickname, "The Ugly Green Thing".

By the 1980's, the bridge had become a hang-out for older children, and was cited as a contributor to neighborhood crime. In the late 1980's, there were several incidents of large stones and cinderblocks being heaved over the side of the bridge onto traffic below, resulting in death and injury to innocent drivers. A wire "ceiling" was installed to prevent this from happening. Meanwhile, times had changed, and school children were riding school buses instead of walking across the bridge.

The bridge was closed in 1995. On both ends, large signs proclaim that this is NCDOT property and trespassing is forbidden. Access is blocked by massive iron bars and a chain-link fence.

The GPS coordinates are for the south end of the bridge, which is the most accessible. On the north end, at the corner of Lakeland and Humphrey Streets, the view of the bridge is blocked by heavy vegetation.

Plans are being developed to demolish this bridge and replace it with a bicycle-friendly version having better lighting and visibility. (Let's don't create the same problems as we had in the past!) The $2 Million project was in the design stage (92% complete) in April, 2007. It is possible, therefore, that this old bridge will be removed during 2008-2009. See the website link below for an artist's proposal for the new structure--which was influenced by the new pedestrian bridge over the Raleigh Beltline.

To reach from NC-147, take Exit 11 (Alston Avenue, NC-55). Go south about two blocks and turn left on Linwood. Go left on Ridgeway and curve around to the right as the road becomes Mathison, then left on Lakeland. The bridge is one block north of the elementary school.

Original Use: Pedestrian Construction: Steel Condition: Poor See this website for more information: [Web Link] Date Built: Not listed Date Abandoned: Not listed Bridge Status - Orphaned or Adopted.: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/06/2008 kydiwl visited it

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