Originally Posted by
Torrilin
The usual reason for a bridge being off limits is... it's part of a limited access highway. In some areas, you may have more limited access bridges than open access. Not good, and depending on the road layout, it may mean a cyclist has to make substantial detours to actually cross. A number of major rivers on the east coast cause this kind of problem.
That says it for me. Until recently, the only bridge near me to cross the Arkansas river was the I-430 bridge. By it's name, you know it's a limited access highway. Three narrow lanes in each direction, with concrete walls on each side and no room at the side of the highway. I don't know of any bicyclists who have ridden it. The nearest bridge was 7 miles away in downtown Little Rock, and no joy to ride.
Last year however, they opened up the Big Dam Bridge, a bridge across the Arkansas River exclusively for pedestrians and bicyclists. It's still a couple of miles out of the way and the bridge itself with the long ramps to and from it is almost a mile. So it's still a substantial detour. But the view is spectacular.
