Workers building the $409-million John James Audubon Bridge over the Mississippi River in Louisiana will have to complete construction with cars cruising by, after the contractor complied with a state request to open the bridge more than a month early to help the state cope with high river levels that shut down an alternative crossing.
With speechmaking and a slow-moving parade of drivers taking advantage of the unexpected chance to try out the giant new bridge—the longest cable stayed in western hemisphere—the Louisiana Dept. of Transportation and Development hosted an emergency opening on May 5, when high water triggered a halt ferry service between St. Francisville and New Roads, where the bridge is located.