Rock Forge Bridge Company workers are moving the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge into position overnight to allow traffic to continue traveling across the Spencer bridge. (Photo Provided)

SPENCER — Slowly but surely, things are sliding into place on one of the busiest thoroughfares in Roane County.

On Sunday night, Rock Forge Bridge Company began moving the new, four-lane Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge into position, eight inches at a time.

Spencer Mayor Terry Williams said it’s a project that’s been talked about for at least two decades.

“It’s (the bridge) 91 years old,” he said. “It’s had some surface situations where there’s been some cracks come in.”

The $5.8 million project was funded through Gov. Jim Justice’s Roads to Prosperity program. Because of the near constant traffic on the bridge carrying U.S. 33 across Spring Creek at U.S. 119, the state Division of Highways and Rock Forge came up with an innovative plan to replace it, according to a release from the West Virginia Department of Transportation.

A view from beneath the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge Sunday night in Spencer as Rock Forge Bridge Company workers began shifting it into position. (Photo Provided)

With construction starting about a year ago, Rock Forge built the new, four-lane span just upstream of the existing two-lane bridge. Once it was complete, traffic was shifted to the new bridge so the old one could be demolished.

“We’ve been driving on two lanes of it since (a few) months ago,” Williams said. “The two lanes that we’ve been using temporarily are the two lanes that will be moved in to the spot where the old Ruby Bridge sat.”

That process started Sunday and is expected to take three nights to complete.

Huge bolts that run the entire width of the bridge – one on the eastern side and one on the western side – are being loosened and tightened to slowly pull the bridge into its new position, the release said.

Rock Forge Bridge Company workers move one of the ceramic plates on which the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge is being moved into position in Spencer from the back of the bridge beam to the front to allow it to slide farther. (Photo Provided)

First, Dawn dishwashing liquid is liberally slathered underneath the new bridge to lubricate its slide across the abutments. The bridge is pulled across ceramic plates to keep from damaging the abutments underneath, and the plates are moved forward every few inches like a heavy weight being pulled across wooden rollers, the release said.

It takes about 15 minutes to move the bridge eight inches, then another 15 minutes to reset the giant bolts for another pull.

Contractors use a tape measure to track the progress. On the surface, the gap between the stripes on the bridge and road are the primary indicator of how far the bridge has moved, the release said.

“This particular project is a good example of how a highway project can impact a community,” said West Virginia Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston. “The town up there has waited a long, long time for this. … It’s going to help Spencer grow. It’s going to help Spencer prosper.”

A Rock Forge Bridge Company worker applies Dawn dishwashing liquid beneath the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge Sunday night to help move it into place. (Photo Provided)

Movement of the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge in Spencer is tracked by tape measure. Workers with the Rock Forge Bridge Company call out every quarter-inch of movement to make sure both ends of the bridge are moving at the same speed. (Photo Provided)

The gap between the stripes on the bridge and road are the primary surface indicator of how far the Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge has moved. (Photo Provided)

BEFORE: These images from a City of Spencer camera show the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge Sunday and then Monday after the Rock Forge Bridge Company worked overnight to move it into place. The process was scheduled to continue Monday night. (Screenshot Provided)

AFTER: These images from a City of Spencer camera show the new Colonel Ruby Bradley Bridge Sunday and then Monday after the Rock Forge Bridge Company worked overnight to move it into place. The process was scheduled to continue Monday night. (Screenshot Provided)