After More Than Two Years, Historic Bridge To Reopen Over River

Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) plans to reopen the old river bridge on Business 71 in La Grange next Monday, Feb. 23.

Westbound traffic will shift to the historic truss bridge in a single lane while eastbound traffic will stay on the new concrete bridge, also in a single lane. TxDOT urges caution to motorists while traveling the new route. Be prepared to stop and watch for slow traffic on Monday while the shift takes place.

The historic metal truss bridge has been closed to traffic for rehabilitation since 2023, when the new concrete bridge was completed.

Rehab work on the old bridge then began in Jan. of 2024. At the time TxDOT said the work would take 10 months. TxDOT built the new concrete bridge because the old truss bridge was too narrow to meet current design standards for two lanes of traffic. Opposing traffic could be very tight at times when the old bridge still carried two lanes, especially when large 18-wheelers passed each other. The two bridges also allow for redundancy on the Business 71 route across the river.