Crossing Bridges (Read 627 times)

How do you guys handle crossing bridges in your runs? I'm currently hemmed in on one side by about a 200 foot long rural bridge, meaning it has no running or bike paths... just road lanes.  There's about 1.5 feet of "shoulder" on one side, none on the other, and there's a curve on the other end that means it's hard to see if something is coming.

What kind of traffic does the bridge see?  Are there times when there is a spike in traffic (people coming home from work, fishermen heading out / heading home, etc...?)  Do you run in the daytime or at night?

I run rural roads and much prefer the narrow side roads to the main highway despite the relative lack of shoulders.  For one reason the speeds are slower and the traffic is significantly lighter.  Hence I have less fear going over the rural bridges than the main highway bridges.

Sometimes on my favorite route I might see only six cars or so, but if I run the same section during the winter in optimum fishing conditions there will be considerable fishing traffic just before dark.  Unfortunately, this traffic corresponds to the times after work when I can run in the little remaining daylight.  Perhaps you can time your runs that go over the bridge for times with less traffic?

The idea of just hammering your way over the bridge is also a good one.  Just stick to the available shoulder so you are where drivers would expect a pedestrian to be.  I also suggest making sure you wear visible colors, or a headlamp if it is getting dark..  Most of the locals who use the side roads I run live there so they are used to seeing a crazy runner in weird places.

Just keep in mine when running in winter weather that bridges often freeze before the roads b/c of the air flow beneath them.  So if you hammer it across, just make sure it isn't slick!