WILSON, Wyo. — Thousands of morning commuters drove past a new feature in Wilson on Monday morning: a critical sign affixed to the Fish Creek pathway bridge.
“Butt Ugly Bridge,” the sign read. “Replace it now!”
Teton County Pathways Coordinator Brian Schilling was driving to Wilson with a pair of bolt cutters to remove the sign when Buckrail reached him by phone.
“I’ve known that people have not liked it,” Schilling said of the bridge, which was installed in 2024. He explained that Teton County “spent multiple years trying not to have to construct a separate bridge in that location,” but that neither the property owner nor the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) facilitated building a lower-profile structure.
Critics of the bridge have complained that the height of the structure blocks the view of Fish Creek as it flows south.
Schilling said that the arched structure of the bridge is necessary due to its length. He noted that due to floodplain permit requirements, the pathway bridge could not include any vertical structures that went into the creek, so it had to be a free span.
WYDOT is currently devising its plan to fully replace the WY22 highway bridge over Fish Creek, which was repaired in November. According to Schilling, if WYDOT finds a way to incorporate enough space in the new highway bridge design to accomodate a pathway, the arched pathway bridge could be rehomed elsewhere in the county.
The appearance of the bridge sign follows a similar demonstration spotted last month in downtown Jackson. Signs criticizing the luxury condominium complex under construction on Pearl Ave. read, “Not for us, Not like us.”
Schilling pointed out that not all of the public contributions to county infrastructure are vandalism. An anonymous resident displays a Christmas wreath on the Snake River pedestrian bridge every year, for example.
