The Tridge
NBI Information
Location
State: Michigan
County: Midland County
Feature Carried: Pedestrian Path
Feature Crossed: Tittabawassee River
Latitude, Longitude: 43.6111, -84.2487
Structure Open, Posted, or Closed to Traffic: Open to Pedestrians
History
Year Built: 1981
Picture Date: August 31, 2025
Geometry
Lanes on Structure: 1
Lanes under Structure: 0
Number of Main Spans: 1
Main Structure Type: Arch - Thru
Main Structure Material: Wood or Timber
Condition
Bridge is not on the National Bridge Inventory
Bridge Information
The Tridge is a three-legged wooden footbridge which stretches over the Tittabawassee River and Chippewa River. It was opened in 1981 and consists of a central pier supporting three arch spans laid out like spokes. Each arch is 180 feet long and 8 feet wide.
Three-way bridges, including T-bridges and Y-bridges, are rare and unusual structures. There are approximately 5 footbridges and 4 vehicular bridges of this layout in the USA. Interestingly, three of these footbridges are in Michigan.
The bridge underwent a major renovation project from April through December in 2017. This project included removing the old stain and restaining the wood, and replacing the original wood decking, railing posts, and overhead cross beams. In addition, the original arch lights were replaced with new programmable color-changing LED lights, and benches were added at the center of the bridge. Some of the removed decking was reused as decking on the new East and West Bridges of the City Forest Mountain Bike Trail. These bridges were replacement bridges after the original bridges were destroyed in a flood in June of 2017.
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