Eight Standout Steel Bridges And One Exceptional Dot You Should Know For 2026

Eight Standout Steel Bridges--and One Exceptional DOT--You Should Know for 2026

Parul Dubey February 17, 2026 News , Events , Bridges , Awards

CHICAGO - Innovation spans the steel bridge industry, but eight recent bridges rise above the rest.

The American Institute of Steel Construction and the National Steel Bridge Alliance are recognizing eight bridges with 2026 Prize Bridge Awards--the structural steel industry’s highest design honor for bridges.

“People across the country rely on steel bridges to connect them to the communities where they live, work, and play--and it takes a specialized group of experts to create those bridges,” said AISC Vice President - Bridges Brandon Chavel, PE, PhD. “This year’s Prize Bridge Award winners are all fantastic examples of how teamwork between owners, designers, fabricators, and constructors can result in innovative and beautiful steel bridges, while also reliably serving their communities for many years to come.”

In 2024, NSBA debuted a brand-new award recognizing extraordinary bridge owners, whose vision and dedication to the public keep America moving. This year, the Owner of the Year award goes to the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT).

Owner of the Year

National Winner: New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT)

“The New York State Department of Transportation provided a vital model for DOTs responding to critical situations, while displaying outstanding in-house capabilities over two different projects,” Chavel said. “Following a bridge hit, the NYSDOT team implemented a cost-effective shoring system to stabilize the Riverview Road Bridge over I-87 until a replacement was designed and installed. This project makes for a fascinating case study on a problem that happens across the country.”

The jury was also impressed by a second quick fix.

“NYSDOT’s featured bridges highlighted incredible collaboration with a fabricator to repurpose rolled shapes owned by NYSDOT for a quick replacement of a bridge that became unstable after a flood,” Chavel said. “That’s just one way that the steel bridge industry can--and does--come together in a crisis to help people get on with their lives as quickly as possible.”

There is one remaining 2026 Prize Bridge Award to name: the Bridge of the Year. The finalists are indicated below; the teams behind those bridges will present to the industry at the World Steel Bridge Symposium at NASCC: The Steel Conference on Wednesday, April 22. Conference participants will select the winner live!

Here are the 2026 winners of the National Steel Bridge Alliance Prize Bridge Awards. Press photos are available for download here.

Major Span Category: one or more spans equal to or greater than 300 ft

National Winner: Hawk Falls Bridge Replacement Project, Carbon County, Pa. (Bridge of the Year finalist)

Owner: Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, Middletown, Pa.
General contractor: Trumbull Corporation, Pittsburgh
Erector: Structural Services, Nazareth, Pa. *AISC associate member*
Structural engineer: Modjeski and Masters, Mechanicsburg, Pa.
Steel fabricator/detailer: High Steel Structures, Lancaster, Pa. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator and erector*

Summary:

The new Hawk Falls Bridge is a three-rib steel deck arch designed not only to serve the traveling public but also to fit perfectly with the natural surroundings. The use of weathering steel for this location and a continuous multi-girder superstructure that minimizes expansion joints should result in a low-maintenance structure for many years to come.

National Winner: I-64 Kanawha River Bridge, Putnam County, W. Va. (Bridge of the Year finalist)

Owner: West Virginia Department of Transportation, Charleston, W. Va.
General contractor/erector: Joint venture of Brayman Construction, Saxonburg, Pa. *AISC full member*, & Trumbull Corporation
Structural engineer: HDR, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Steel fabricator/detailer: High Steel Structures, Lancaster, Pa. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator and erector*

Summary:

The record span of the new I-64 Kanawha Bridge shows that thoughtful engineering and design considerations can result in the use of typical plate girder fabrication and construction for long spans, once thought to be unimaginable for this bridge type. This project shows that very long-span steel plate girders are a cost-effective, efficiently constructable solution for future projects of this size.

Medium Span Category: longest span equal to or greater than 140 ft but less than 300 ft

National Winner: Panther Creek Bridge, Klamath, Calif.

Owner: Caltrans, Sacramento, Calif.
General contractor/erector: Golden State Bridge Engineers & Contractors, Benicia, Calif. *AISC associate member*
Structural engineer: Caltrans, Sacramento, Calif.
Steel fabricator/detailer: Thompson Metal Fab, Vancouver, Wash. *AISC full member; AISC-certified fabricator*

Summary:

The tied-arch structure of the Panther Creek Bridge is an aesthetically pleasing solution that only steel can provide. While visually stimulating, the bridge solves functional issues by keeping substructure units out of the water below and limiting changes to the roadway profile.

Merit Winner: Broadway Viaduct Bridge Replacement, Nashville, Tenn.

Owner: Tennessee Department of Transportation, Nashville, Tenn.
General contractor/erector: Kiewit, Nashville, Tenn. *AISC-certified fabricator and erector*
Structural engineer: Gresham Smith, Nashville, Tenn.
Steel fabricator/detailer: W&W | AFCO Steel *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator and erector*

Summary:

The Broadway Viaduct Bridge Replacement project is a great case study for how only steel can be customized to provide a shallow superstructure that meets the vertical clearance requirements of obstructions below, with minimal disturbance to the bridge approach roadway.

Short Span Category: no single span greater than 140 ft

National Winner: FARM Bridges Design/Build Bundle, Missouri

Owner: Missouri Department of Transportation, Jefferson City, Mo.

General contractor/erector: Capital Construction, Jefferson City, Mo.

Structural engineer: Wilson & Company, Kansas City, Mo.

Steel fabricator/detailer: DeLong’s, Inc. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator*

Summary:

The FARM Bridges Design Build Bundle project shows once again the cost-effectiveness that steel superstructures can provide in both the short-span and design-build environments. Coordination by all project stakeholders resulted in simplified fabrication and erection for 31 different short-span bridges across the state of Missouri.

Movable Bridge Category

National Winner: Unionport Bridge, New York

Owner: New York City Department of Transportation, New York

General contractor/erector: Unionport Constructors, joint venture of Schiavone Construction Co. and Lane Construction Corp., New York

Structural engineer: Hardesty & Hanover, New York

Fabrication team: STS Steel, Schenectady, N.Y. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator*

Detailer: DBM Vircon, Tempe, Ariz. *AISC associate member*

Summary:

The precision and accuracy needed for the twin single-leaf bascules spans of the Unionport Bridge can only be accomplished with the use of structural steel. Additionally, another key feature of this project is the construction of the bridge within the site constraints of an incredibly tight urban environment.

Special Purpose Category

National Winner: Williams Crossing, Tulsa, Okla. (Bridge of the Year finalist)

Owner: Stonebridge Group, LLC, Tulsa, Okla.
General contractor: Crossland Construction Company, Tulsa, Okla.
Structural engineer: schlaic bergermann partner (sbp), New York
Steel fabricator: Hillsdale Fabricators, St. Louis *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator*
Detailer: Esskay Structures, Vienna, Va. *AISC associate member*
Consultant: ruby + associates, Bingham Farms, Mich.

Summary:

The Williams Crossing pedestrian bridge demonstrates yet another way structural steel elegantly meets transportation needs. The first-ever use of this stiffened-plate concept is the signature feature of this bridge, which can only result from great teamwork.

REHABILITATION Category

National Winner: Sherman Minton Corridor Project, New Albany, Ind.

Owner’s representative: Michael Baker International, Indianapolis

Co-owners: Indiana Department of Transportation, Indianapolis; Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Frankfort, Ky.

General contractor/erector: Kokosing, Westerville, Ohio *AISC-certified erector*

Structural engineers: Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., St. Louis Fabricator/detailer/bender-roller: Bottoms Engineering and Service Inc, Frankfort, Ky. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator*

Additional fabricator/detailers: U.S. Bridge, Cambridge, Ohio *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator*; Advantage Steel & Construction, Saxonburg, Pa. *AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator and erector*; St. Louis Screw and Bolt, Madison, Ill. *AISC associate member*; Scougal Rubber, McCarran, Nev. AISC full member, AISC-certified fabricator

Summary:

One of the great aspects of steel bridges is the ability to rehabilitate, strengthen, and repair them to extend their service life for years to come. The Sherman Minton Bridge, originally constructed in 1962, is another example of a signature structure that can be expertly rehabilitated and strengthened. In this case, the project team used innovative construction methods to replace the hangers and strengthen the superstructure through various steel repairs.

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For more information, contact:

Nadine Blanpied
Communications Content Specialist
312.502.3667
blanpied@aisc.org

American Institute of Steel Construction

The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), a not-for-profit technical institute supported by the steel industry, partners with the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) community to develop safe and efficient steel specifications and codes while driving innovation to make steel the most sustainable, economic, and resilient structural material. For more than a century, AISC has been a reliable resource for information and advice on the design and construction of domestically fabricated structural steel buildings and bridges.

130 E. Randolph St, Suite 2000
Chicago IL 60601
312.670.2401
www.aisc.org

Author

Parul Dubey