Commercial Weight Limit Drops Tomorrow on East Kooskia Bridge
Ferdinand, ID · September 13, 2026
Rain is drumming steadily against the metal roofs this morning. It makes for a quiet start to Sunday, but keep the slick asphalt in mind if you are hitting the road.
The Lead
Starting Monday, the Idaho Transportation Department is reducing the weight limit on the East Kooskia Bridge to eight tons gross vehicle weight. The restriction effectively bars heavy commercial trucks, logging rigs, and agricultural haulers from crossing the 1935 steel structure over the South Fork Clearwater River. Recent state inspections revealed progressive corrosion and steel section loss, leaving engineers no choice but to slash allowable loads to safeguard the aging span. Passenger vehicles and standard pickups remain unaffected and can cross normally. For commercial operators carrying heavier autumn loads, traffic must divert to the State Highway 13 bridge roughly one mile west. ITD crews are installing new roadside signage today while continuing design studies on a permanent replacement.
Today's Outlook
- High 57°F · Low 43°F — Rain (76% chance of precipitation)
- Keep an umbrella handy and layer up against the chilly, damp autumn air today.
What's On Around Town
- Cottonwood: Knights of Columbus Breakfast KC Hall (606 King St), 7:00–10:00 AM Stack up pancakes and scrambled eggs while supporting local youth programs.
Spotlight & Story
- Tolo Lake
- Beneath the calm waters of this 36-acre prairie basin lies an ancient Pleistocene watering hole. During a 1994 muck-clearing project, excavators unexpectedly unearthed Columbian mammoth bones, revealing that ice-age giants once congregated right along these marshy shores.
Ferdinand Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.
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