Navajo Bridge, Colorado River in Arizona

Spanning the Colorado River at Marble Canyon, the Navajo Bridge has become the single route south and out of Arizona, or north to reach the Grand Canyon. Many years ago, ferries crossed a more treacherous stretch of the river at Lee's Ferry, but now locals and visitors alike pack this crowded roadway.

The Navajo Bridge, Arizona, replaced the Lee's Ferry crossing on the Colorado River near Marble Canyon. It is the only route across the river and through to the Grand Canyon. It is not only a busy thoroughfare for eager travelers heading south to Utah, but also north to the hardest to reach portions of northern Arizona.

The original crossing was done were low canyon walls and water access was fairly easy. However, the service relied greatly on the weather conditions and the lack of local floods. Then in 1927, the bridge was build, finally being opened up to traffic two years later. Its cost was covered by a combination of funds from both the US Dept. of Indian Affairs and the Arizona Dept. of Transportation, due to its eastern point being on Navajo land.

This steel bridge measures over eight hundred feet long and rises above the floor of the canyon by over four hundred feet. Though a wide road was contemplated, costs kept it down to a two lane section. Even now weight restrictions are in place.

By 1990, the traffic volume had greatly increased, putting a great strain on the bridge. Further hazards came from limited visibility when approaching it and the capacity for loads were no longer functional.

Solving this was not just based on the bridge itself, but the preservation of rare native lands, plants and the risk of pollution during construction. So, instead of fortifying and widening it as originally planned, the bridge was finally replaced with a better one right next to it. The old one was closed and the new one was more than able to withstand the stresses that modern society placed on it.

The new arched bridge was finally finished in 1995. However, though the earlier bridge was closed to traffic, horse riders and pedestrians continue to use it, not only to appreciate the natural wonders that surround it, but as a testament to the history of civil engineering.