Purple People Bridge will partially reopen Thursday: Damage was to pier on Ohio side approach

Part of the Purple People Bridge will be reopened to pedestrians with access allowed only from the Kentucky side of the Ohio River, said Jack Moreland, the president of the Newport Southbank Bridge Company.

It will open to the public at 9 a.m. Thursday morning, Moreland said.

The pedestrian bridge was closed May 11 after a large stone fell from the bridge into the first pier on the Cincinnati side and created a safety hazard. Officials said other stones were also loosened as well.

The pier, which is on dry land usually unless there is flooding, is part of the approach on the Ohio side of the river to the bridge, Moreland said.

"It’s not part of the bridge proper," he said.

WSP USA Inc.,the engineering firm hired by the bridge company, determined metal supporters between the bridge itself and the bridge approach are detached from one another, so that risk is contained to the Ohio side approach, Moreland said.

The Purple People Bridge, which opened in 1872, was the first railroad bridge across the Ohio River in Cincinnati. It was the second bridge across the waterway. The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge opened in 1866 was the first bridge across the river. The Purple Bridge was substantially rebuilt in 1897 when piers were widened.

The damaged pier was part of a later addition to allow for automobile usage, and was not one of the original piers constructed for the railroad bridge, Moreland said. 

People will be blocked from entering or exiting the Ohio side of the bridge by a barrier, he said. Pedestrians will have to enter the bridge from Newport.

"We know people are wanting to walk on it and use it," Moreland said. "It will be the 4th of July soon. We know some people, including those visiting from out of town, will want to go out on the bridge and take pictures."

WSP USA Inc. had recommended a survey of the entire deck of the bridge and said that Pier 1, the northernmost pier of the bridge, had deteriorated to the point that it needs to be repaired before that portion of the bridge reopens to pedestrians.

That survey has been completed, and the bridge company is in the process of meeting with two or three local companies that could possibly be used, Moreland said.

He declined to discuss projected costs in detail, but discussed the potential and likely paths to fixing the pier on the Ohio side bridge approach.

There are options for a temporary fix, an intermediary fix and a "Cadillac-type" fix that would be a repair for the next 100 years, he said.

The intermediary fix is the likely path forward and would give the bridge company a 15-year fix to enact a permanent fix later, Moreland said.

"That number is something we can live with, but at the same time we’re not flush with money," he said.

The bridge is completely privately funded and does not receive any public funds to maintain the structure, according to the company's website. The nonprofit does accept donations and is currently fundraising to completely repaint the bridge. The goal of its current campaign is $100,000 but that's only a portion of the $1 million price tag to paint and maintain the bridge. 

The bridge company has a nine-member board with the president of Southbank Partners appointing four of them, the Newport City Manager appointing four of them, and Southbank and Newport choosing the other board member by mutual agreement, Moreland said. Moreland, Southbank's president, is retiring at the end of the day Wednesday.

For now, the public will have to enter and exit the bridge from the Kentucky side, Moreland said in a release.

“We have appreciated the public’s patience while we worked through this situation,” Moreland said in the release. “We know how popular the Purple People Bridge is, and our focus is getting it fully reopened. But for now, at least part of the bridge can be utilized and enjoyed once again.”