WilCo Officials, Residents Celebrate CR 456 Bridge Reopening

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TX — City and state officials celebrated alongside residents this week to celebrate the re-opening of the CR 456 truss bridge over Brushy Creek.

The gathering of Williamson County and Texas Department of Transportation officials with residents of Coupland occurred on Monday morning. They gathered to celebrate re-opening of the bridge that has been out of service since August 2014 when it was inspected following flooding and closed due to damage. The bridge was repaired by Fuqua Construction Company for $247,964 and was funded by the TxDOT federal Highway Bridge Program, county officials said.

“This was not only a unique bridge, but a very important route for people who live in the area,“ TxDOT Georgetown Area Engineer Bobby Ramthun said. “It was important for us to restore the integrity of the bridge while maintaining its character.”

County and state transportation officials gathered to celebrate re-opening of the CR 456 bridge. Photo courtesy of Williamson County.

The CR 456 bridge was first built in 1912 and is the only one of its kind truss bridge still in use in Williamson County with all timber decking, county officials said. The historic bridge has a notable past having been featured in the movies “Second Hand Lions” and “Varsity Blues.”

“This project was small in scale, but it has a great impact for the local community,” Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles said. “It will help emergency vehicles get to certain parts of the county much more quickly.”