Historic Bismarck bridge targeted for removal

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A historic bridge in Bismarck that a nonprofit tried for years to save is now being targeted for removal. Friends of the Rail Bridge wants to stop BNSF Railway from demolishing the 138-year-old Bismarck-Mandan Rail Bridge spanning the Missouri River, the Bismarck Tribune reported on Saturday. The preservation group and railroad signed an agreement with the U.S. Coast Guard in January outlining paths to either keep or remove the bridge. The Coast Guard decides on projects proposed along that part of the Missouri River. The railroad, in a letter dated Thursday, asked the Coast Guard to shift its efforts from preserving the bridge to removing it.