The bridge opened in 1901, at an original construction cost of $1,640,523.11 and a land cost of $803,988.37. Major reinforcing work was done in 1916. However, in 1941, the bridge failed monthly inspection and therefore was converted to one-way operation northbound on August 5, 1941 on the same day the Third Avenue Bridge was similarly converted to one-way southbound. Due to its poor condition, the bridge was replaced starting in 2007 and converted to pedestrian-only traffic for three years, and then was dismantled once a sidewalk was put in on the new bridge.
New bridge
In November 2005, New York City sought to replace the bridge. In an effort to preserve the structure, the city offered it for sale for $1, with free delivery within 15 miles. Due to the difficult logistics of moving the structure, there were no bids as of March 2007. On April 12, 2011, granite from the structure was given to a nearby park while the metal part was moved via tug to Jersey City. The steel was melted down and the concrete parts were made into fill. The Department of Transportation opted to construct a new structure to the south of the existing bridge at a projected cost of $417 million. On March 8, 2007, when bidding for construction was opened, of the two bids offered, the lowest came in at $612 million. Iris Weinshall, the department commissioner, said that the city had to go forward with the project because maintenance of the existing bridge was too expensive and the design of the ramps contributed to frequent accidents. This was the most costly bridge construction project by the New York City Department of Transportation. Weinshall expected the project to last five years with construction beginning around the end of 2007. The replacement bridge was constructed at Port of Coeymans, 10 miles south of Albany. On July 13, 2010, the bridge was shipped down the Hudson on two barges that were welded together. The new bridge is 350 feet long, 65 feet high and 77 feet wide; it required three tugboats to propel it. The sight of the floating bridge caused a stir among onlookers all along the Hudson. After a stay at Port Jersey in Jersey City it was towed up the East River to its destination in the morning on July 26. Motor traffic was shifted to the new bridge on October 2, 2010, though the walkway of the old bridge continued to serve pedestrians and cyclists for a few weeks. Just upstream, the Third Avenue Bridge carries southbound traffic across the Harlem River from the Bronx to Manhattan as the other side of a one-way pair. That bridge was replaced in 2004.
"Willis Avenue Bridge" is the name of a song by David Berkeley from his 2009 album Strange Light "Beneath the Willis Bridge" is the name of the 2015 album released by 80 REEF In a famous publicity photo for the film Midnight Cowboy, Joe Buck and Ratso Rizzo are seen walking on the old Willis Avenue Bridge.
