Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge

J Robert Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge
Carries	Pedestrian and bicycle traffic
Crosses	Missouri River
Locale	Omaha, Nebraska Council Bluffs, Iowa
Designer	HNTB
Design	Cable-stayed
Total length	3,000 ft (910 m)
Longest span	506 ft (154 m)
Clearance below	52 ft (16 m)
Construction begin	2006-10-26[1]
Opened	2008-09-28[2]
Coordinates	41°15′43″N 95°55′19″W / 41.261808°N 95.921931°W / 41.261808; -95.921931Coordinates: 41°15′43″N 95°55′19″W / 41.261808°N 95.921931°W / 41.261808; -95.921931

The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge^[3] is a 3,000 ft (910 m) footbridge across the Missouri River between Council Bluffs, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska. It opened on 28 September 2008.^[2]

Interest in a landmark bridge across the Missouri River arose after Omaha and Council Bluffs began replacing their older crossings with girder bridges which do not have towers (most notably the Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge).^{[citation needed]} The bridge is named after former Nebraska Senator Bob Kerrey, who secured $18 million of federal funding for the bridge in 2000.^[3]

The bridge was redesigned in 2004 after the lowest bid for the project was $44 million. In May 2006, a final cable-stayed bridge design by Kansas City engineering and architectural firm HNTB was selected for the bridge. The $22 million bid included two 200-foot (61 m) towers and a clearance of 52 feet (16 m) above the river. Groundbreaking for construction of the bridge occurred on October 26, 2006.^[1]

The bridge is north of the I-480 girder bridge and connects the Port of Omaha's Miller Landing in Omaha to One Renaissance Center in the former Dodge Park Playland in Council Bluffs, making it the first ever pedestrian bridge to connect two states.

The lights on the bridge were donated by Gallup, which has their corporate headquarters and Gallup University located on the Missouri River adjacent the Omaha landing of the bridge. The bridge lights include programmable controls that can display multiple colors in the large lights at the top of the towers and alter brightness and timing of the lights that run the entire length of the bridge. The lights were officially unveiled in a ceremony on September 13, 2008. The bridge lights were turned on while the Phil Collins song "In The Air Tonight" was played over a PA system. The event was accompanied by fireworks.

Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge at sunset

Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge in Spring

See also

• Trails in Omaha
• List of crossings of the Missouri River
• Parks in Omaha

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Ground Broken On Pedestrian Bridge". KETV. 2006-10-26. http://www.ketv.com/newsarchive/10164746/detail.html. Retrieved 2006-11-17. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge To Open September 28". KETV. 2008-09-11. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26661026. Retrieved 2008-09-11. ^{[dead link]}
3. ^ ^{a b} "Omaha vote makes name official: Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge". Omaha World-Herald. 2008-09-09. http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2798&u_sid=10428458. Retrieved 2008-09-09. 

External links

Media related to Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge at Wikimedia Commons

• Omahariverfront.com article on final design
• Construction Cam
• Missouri River Pedestrian Bridge at Structurae
• Pedestrian Bridge Concept Pictures at official Omaha city website
• Video walking tour of bridge