Glacier Park to replace Many Glacier bridge

Glacier National Park officials have completed an environmental analysis and public review process on replacing the Swiftcurrent Bridge at Many Glacier and the National Park Service regional director has signed off on a decision to proceed with the project.

Bridge replacement work will begin in late September, after the Many Glacier Hotel and other concession operations close for the season. Work will proceed through the first week of December may be underway 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The access road to the hotel will be closed while work is underway. Masonry construction, roadway preparation, and paving required to complete the project will occur in late summer to early fall 2015, with work occurring during daytime hours and access to the hotel remaining open.

The bridge, located at the foot of Swiftcurrent Lake, is losing structural integrity, its deck is severely damaged and the abutments and piers supporting it are in disrepair. The bridge has limited capacity for handling high water due to the four interior piers.

Other problems include deteriorated curbs and sidewalk, loose or missing stone masonry and suspended utility lines on the bridge that do not comply with modern building codes.

The 75-foot, five-span bridge will be replaced with an 85-foot single-span bridge on the existing alignment.

The interior piers will be removed and new abutments will be built. Utilities will be contained within the bridge structure to comply with codes and improve aesthetics.

The bridge will be designed to be compatible with historic and architectural characteristics of the Many Glacier Hotel Historic District. The bridge will have two nine-foot wide lanes, a three-foot wide sidewalk and a five-foot wide bridle path.