Borden Road Bridge

Learn about historic curved-chord through girder bridges.

Most Recent Visit To Bridge: March 2007

Key Facts

Bridge Name	Facility Carried / Feature Intersected	Location	Structure Type	Construction Date / Builder or Contractor
Borden Road Bridge	Borden Road Over Prairie Creek	Rural: Ionia County, Michigan	Concrete 40 Foot Plan Curved Chord Through Girder, Stationary	1927 By: Unknown

Technical Facts

Structure Length	Roadway Width	Main Spans	Approach Spans
40 Feet (12.2 Meters)	23 Feet (7 Meters)	1	None

This bridge continues to show how hardy these concrete camelback bridges are by continuing to serve traffic with no posted weight limit. This does not mean the bridge is in great condition however, as the tops of the girders have spalled quite a bit. These bridges seem to be able to suffer quite a bit of spalling before it will affect their structural integrity. As one of around 40 remaining concrete camelbacks in Michigan, this bridge should be preserved to carry the light to moderate traffic seen on this road.

On an unrelated note, this bridge is located a ways west of Hubbardson. From what was visible, the town must have made the poor decision to remove or let collapse a historic bridge and had then built a slab, on a new alignment. This original bridge was likely a metal truss bridge. The old road alignment and abutments could be seen.