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Ralph Wilson Park Pedestrian Bridge Completes Its Route and Arrives in Buffalo

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Tuesday marked a major milestone as construction continues to transform Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Park into a state-of-the-art park.

The first barge carrying pieces of the park’s iconic pedestrian bridge has completed its long transatlantic journey and arrived on the shore of Ralph Wilson Park.

The bridge, manufactured by international company Cimolai at a factory in Italy, left the manufacturing site an hour north of Venice in four pieces in early June and crossed the Atlantic Ocean via New York Harbor.

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Loaded deck on a ship in Italy.

Earlier this year, a group involved in the park’s construction traveled to Italy to get a first-hand look at the progress of the bridge. 7 News got a first look at video from that trip. You can watch our report below.

‘A major work’: Buffalo’s iconic Ralph Wilson Park pedestrian bridge under construction in Italy

The bridge pieces were then loaded onto two barges near Albany and spent 12 days traveling across the Erie Canal before arriving at Ralph Wilson Park on Tuesday.

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New bridge on a barge that passed through the Waterford Locks outside Albany

“It’s incredible,” Campos told 7 News as the bridge arrived Tuesday. “It’s an emotional experience. Even seeing the Seneca Chief with bagpiper Marley Becker on top come into Buffalo with part of the Ralph Wilson Park Bridge, it’s a huge milestone for the park. It’s a major moment for the city and the state. It was awesome.”

Campos says the design process for Ralph Wilson Park and the new bridge began in 2017 with community input.

“Their number one priority was safer access to Ralph Wilson Park,” Campos said. “They wanted a new bridge that would add major infrastructure to the transformation of that park, and this was the first important step in realizing the community’s vision.”

The second barge carrying the final pieces of the bridge will arrive in the coming days. The bridge pieces will then be unloaded and welded together over the next six to eight weeks before being installed on I-190 in October.

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Rendering of the new bridge that will cross Highway 190 in Buffalo.

“If you don’t know about Ralph Wilson Park, you certainly will now when the bridge is built,” Campos said. “I think hundreds, if not thousands of people have heard about Ralph Wilson Park and what we’re doing here with this bridge going down the Erie Canal in the last 12 days.”

Additional construction will take place on the bridge before Ralph Wilson Park begins opening in phases in 2026.

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