A new bridge over the Flathead River in Kalispell has opened.
The new bridge that opened Thursday to traffic replaced the 114-year-old Old Steel Bridge.
The 740-foot span cost $8.8 million and took about 18 months to build.
By 2021, the highway department projects the bridge will be carrying 1,320 vehicle trips a day. That more than doubles the 670 daily trips when the last traffic study was done in 2001.