A New River Crossing

I have just penciled in a note on my schedule for early June to join officials from Missouri and Illinois in celebrating the formal opening of the McKinley Bridge Bikeway and the Branch Street Trestle.

The Bikeway is a half-mile long bicycle lane cantilevered on the side of the refurbished McKinley Bridge. It will allow bicyclists to cross the Mississippi River, protected from cars and trucks, along an original path of Route 66. The Trestle is a slightly shorter, 20-foot wide paved path that will rise up to the bridge from street level on Branch St. The two new elements will be parts of one of the bike world’s most unique and interesting rides when the planned Iron Horse elevated trestle is completed.

I have written about the McKinley Bridge Bikeway and Branch Street Trestle connector before, here and here.