A major bridge that carried Route 66 traffic for a while near St. Louis, the westbound I-270 Chain of Rocks Canal Bridge, was partially imploded today.
The Chain of Rocks Canal Bridge — not the one over the Mississippi River, but to the east in Illinois — had a replacement built last year. From the mid-1960s until 1979, the pair of spans carried US 66 as well. (US 66 was truncated to Joplin in 1979.)
The canal bridge that connects to the old Chain of Rocks Bridge is still alive and well.
Another piece of Route 66 history was lost last year when the vehicle deck was removed from the MacArthur Bridge in downtown St. Louis. You can see the old Missouri approach and the decking in the Google Maps satellite view.