UP County Road 69 Bridge

Located on the west side of Shakopee, this bridge carries the remaining spur of the original Hastings & Dakota line former Chicago & North Western Railway across County Road 69 (former US Highway 169). Located parallel to the former Milwaukee Road bridge, this bridge was constructed in 1957 to replace an older deck plate girder and trestle bridge. The bridge consists of a 100-foot, a 99-foot, an 80-foot and a 77-foot deck plate girder spans, set onto concrete substructures. The bridge is set at a 57-degree left skew, runs at a curve and uses a ballast deck. The east and west piers are each a triangular shape, which accommodates the heavy skew of this bridge. On the west pier, the north face uses an extra hinged span; identical to the south face of the east pier. An unknown contractor fabricated the steel for this bridge, while the Kraus-Anderson Construction Company constructed the substructure and erected the bridge. Typical of grade separations from this era, this bridge features a handful of decorative features, such as attractive railings. This type of bridge was commonly used by railroads for grade separations, as it was durable and easy to construct. A bypass of Shakopee opened in 1995, and the roadway underneath this bridge reverted to Scott County ownership. As part of a major construction project, the bridge was rehabilitated in 2012, which included repairing deteriorated concrete and repainting the entire bridge. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, and the bridge was rehabilitated in 2012. The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the newer age.