Friday March 29th, 2024 4:33AM

Officials cut ribbon on iconic Lula railroad bridge

LULA — It took about a year, but the Cobb Street bridge over the railroad in downtown Lula has reopened to traffic.

Congressman Doug Collins, Georgia Department of Transportation officials and others joined Mayor Milton Turner and members of the Lula City Council for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the bridge last week.

The bridge had been shut down last year after structural deficiencies were identified during an inspection of the bridge.

Officials from Norfolk Southern wanted to remove the bridge, but city leaders adamantly opposed the demolition because of the bridge's iconic presence in the Lula.

"It's really kind of unique," City Manager Dennis Bergin said. "We're not sure the age of the bridge. We know it's probably in excess of 80-plus years. And it's an icon in this area."

Lula Mayor Milton Turner expressed his gratitude to Georgia Department of Transportation officials for their involvement, and acknowledged the repairs made by Norfolk Southern.

"The biggest one we need to thank is Doug Collins and his office, who got behind this project and helped push it forward to get repairs because, as Dennis said earlier, this is our heritage," Turner said. "I grew up here, and I've known it all my life, and if this thing goes away it changes the dynamics of downtown Lula."

Collins shared his own memories of growing up crossing the Cobb Street bridge.

"When this first came up, the first thing my staff started hearing about was trips across this bridge to baseball games in the back end of a pickup truck," Collins said. "You can't put a price tag on history, and if you lose history it's gone. I don’t want my kids and grandkids to grow up and think, 'there was an old bridge one time in Lula', especially when we could get help."

  • Associated Categories: Business News, Local/State News, Politics
  • Associated Tags: Lula, Lula City Council, Congressman Doug Collins, Norfolk Southern, Mayor Milton Turner, City Manager Dennis Bergin
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