The Old Cedar Avenue Bridge had a 5 section through-truss bridge, then a shorter swing bridge over the main channel. The section we see here was given to the City of Bloomington by the State of Minnesota in 1981, and was still open to automobile traffic as late as 1993. It was part of a regional trail until 2002 when the bridge was deemed to be unsafe. The main channel bridge is long gone, along with any evidence that it ever existed.

Bicycle traffic was able to use the 5 span section to cross over to the island in the river, then cross the main channel using a narrow bridge that is suspended under the east span of the new bridge. When the old bridge was closed in 2002, the main span bicycle bridge was also closed.

There is a lot of interest in rebuilding the bridge over the secondary channel. For bicycles, the next nearest crossing leading to the south and east parts of the metro area is a 15 mile detour. The existing bridge is covered with lead paint, so it would have to be wrapped in plastic before being removed. The structure is so weak that you can put your fingers through the beams in places, so the spans would have to be reinforced before moving them to keep them from falling apart and dropping into the river. The cost to remove the bridge is estimated at $1-million. A new bicycle bridge might cost a million or two, while an automobile bridge could cost upwards of $5-million.