Old Bridge & A Concerned Resident

Some of the bridges and viaducts around the city and Sloop are definitely old and scary dangerous. A concerned reader recently emailed us after reading an interesting story in the Chicago Tribune about technology being used to monitor old bridges:

Hey Guys!

I regularly check your blog. I'm a resident, business owner, and law student here in Chicago. I live in 1720 South Michigan. I just read this article and a light went on in my head. Have you ever walked under the bridge near the intersection of Michigan and 16th when a freight train is going over it? I cross my fingers every time I do. It may be "structurally sound" but, if a car ran into one of those 100 year old, rusted out, flimsy columns that support the bridge with a several ton train overhead, I'd venture to guess it would fail. Are there any plans to renovate/repair it?

A concerned resident

We've noticed this bridge and although we haven't had the same worries, we can see where you're coming from. I haven't read anything in regard to renovations, but there has been a lot of talk about making these tracks inactive by rerouting trains (see old Sloopin posts on the topic here). There was some talk about converting this into a walking/running/biking path, but as far as we know those aren't happening (although we wish they were!).

(Hat Tip: MR!)