Formerly traffic across the river was limited to ferries. The
John P. Grace Memorial Bridge was opened for service on August 8, 1929, as the automobile and trucks became an increasingly important mode of transportation. It was named for the commissioner who inspired the state's highway system. The State of South Carolina built a parallel span that opened April 29, 1966, the
Silas N. Pearman Bridge constructed a few yards (meters) to the south. For more than a quarter of a century, the only connection between Charleston and its rapidly growing northern suburb of
Mt. Pleasant was by these two bridges. In 1992, the
Don Holt Bridge was completed a few miles upriver as part of the
I-526 corridor, and became the third bridge to span the river. The
cable-stayed Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge (or "New Cooper River Bridge") opened to traffic on July 16, 2005, to replace the two older bridges. Demolition of the Grace and Pearman bridges began shortly afterwards and was completed in late 2007. A popular 10k run across the bridge is held each spring, and is known as the
Cooper River Bridge Run. Though both bridges are modern in every respect, the Holt and Ravenel bridges carry all motor vehicular traffic across the river in the metropolitan area. Further north, the Dennis C. Bishop Bridge carries
US 52-
US 17 Alternate traffic across the Tail Race canal just below the
Pinopolis Dam on Lake Moultrie in northern Berkeley County. A
CSX Transportation trestle bridge traverses the upper reaches of the West Branch, below the Pinopolis Dam. Another rail bridge crosses the Tail Race Canal less than a mile below the dam. ==References==