The Rulo Rail Bridge is a truss bridge

Truss bridge

A truss bridge is a bridge composed of connected elements which may be stressed from tension, compression, or sometimes both in response to dynamic loads. Truss bridges are one of the oldest types of modern bridges...

 across the Missouri River

Missouri River

The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...

 connecting Rulo, Nebraska

Rulo, Nebraska

-History:The 'Leary' excavation is the main 'Oneota'- reference to the Missouri River. The Oneota were a 'Mississippi' equal culture that flourished from 1000 to 1650 AD. Oneota are the ancestors of Siouane-speaking tribes. The site is located near present Rulo. Around 1640, the area around the...

 with Holt County, Missouri

Holt County, Missouri

Holt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. The county is in the northwest part of the state. As of 2010, the population was 4,912. Its county seat is Oregon. The county was organized in 1841 and is named after the Missouri state legislator Dr...

 and is used by the BNSF Railway

BNSF Railway

The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...

 to transport coal from Wyoming and Colorado to Midwest power plants.

The original bridge was built in 1887. It was fabricated in England and reassembled at Rulo. In the summer of 1977 the steel truss was replaced in 48 hours when sections of the new bridge were assembled on either side of the river, then lifted on to falsework

Falsework

Falsework consists of temporary structures used in construction to support spanning or arched structures in order to hold the component in place until its construction is sufficiently advanced to support itself...

towers on barges on both sides of the up and downstream sides. The new bridge was placed on the upstream towers and the old bridge was moved to the downstream side and then new bridge was placed on the original 1887 piers. The total cost of the operation was $6.7 million.

Prior to the replacement only grain rather than coal trains could cross the bridge.