JACKSON, Wyo. — On Saturday, Nov. 9, the Swinging Bridge opened to travelers approximately nine months earlier than anticipated.
Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) Resident Engineer Bob Hammond told Buckrail that Reiman Corporation and their subcontractors did a lot of planning and work to open the bridge early.
“They were able to take advantage of winter flows effectively to remove both of the old piers and build two new piers in the same winter rather than over two winters,” Hammond said. “This acceleration is what allowed the bridge to open now rather than in the summer of 2025.”
In October 2023, the Swinging Bridge was estimated to be closed for reconstruction until June 30, 2025. The earlier completion date means that local residents no longer have to make the extra commute driving south on US 26/89/189/191 to Henry’s Road.
Hammond explained that the Swinging Bridge, a single-lane structure in place since 1960, never swung in the south of town location. The name was derived from the original swinging bridge composed of a series of connected triangles called trusses that crossed the Snake River on WY22 in Wilson.
When the Wilson River Bridge was replaced in 1959, three of its five trusses were moved to construct the Swinging Bridge south of Jackson.
“The old bridge was originally built in 1929 over the Snake River on WY22,” Hammond explained. “Old timers tell me they remember that bridge and waiting for traffic to cross before their vehicle could proceed on WY22. The truss bridge from WY22 was relocated to two crossings — one at Swinging Bridge and the other at Astoria. Both of those pieces of the 1929 bridge are being replaced with new bridges.”
According to Hammond, the old Swinging Bridge was removed because it had weight and dimensional restrictions. The new, two-lane bridge is constructed with standard rails that are not load or size restricted.
While some on-going work is still being finished, including grout filling under rails, cleanup and seed placement, this work will not impact the structural integrity of the bridge, according to WYDOT.
“The bridge and roadway are complete with all safety items needed to open the bridge,” Hammond said.
The Swinging Bridge replacement project was part of WYDOT’s Bridge Replacement Off System (BROS) program, a federally funded program to reduce the number of deficient off-system bridges, or what the Federal Highway Administration defines as “a highway bridge located on a public road.”
