Some trailer-destroying local bridges come and go, while some become icons. Mandatory Milwaukee is all about the latter. This week: the “KK Can Opener” and “Swan Slicer” bridges.
Even though much of our attention in regard to “Milwaukee Things” has gone to that boat lately, we still haven’t forgotten about a couple of other iconic and unconventional local landmarks. No, we’re not talking about that one clock tower, nor are we referring to the snow pile. Today we’re going to focus on some area bridges that are infamous for routinely “eating” semi-trailers.
While they’re situated on opposite ends of metro Milwaukee, both of these bridges have the ability to ruin the day of any inattentive truck driver who’s bold enough to try to squeeze their big rig beneath them. Each of these bridges have funny nicknames and their own dedicated fan pages. Some fear them and others revere them. Like it or not, they’re both certified local legends.
We’ll start with the “KK Can Opener,” which is a railroad bridge on South Kinnickinnic Avenue that’s situated between Bay View and Walker’s Point pretty close to that outlet store that sells discounted dips and spreads. Actually, there are two bridges there that are about a block apart (one at Kinnickinnic and Becher and the other a few hundred feet north near Kinnickinnic and Maple that tends to do the most damage). They both have a posted height of 12 feet and 9 inches, but former Bay View Alderman Tony Zielinski told TMJ4 in 2018 the bridges are actually higher than their posted clearance “to give an extra leeway just in case.”
Evidently, the extra inches aren’t enough to get the clearance between pavement and the bridge’s base beyond 13 feet and 6 inches—the highest legal height for trucks. Every few weeks on average, a semi will become wedged in either one of these railroad bridges, have the top of its trailer sheered clean off, or motorists will have to wait for a truck driver (who fortunately made a last-second realization of what was about to happen) to turn their big rig around in search of safer passage.
When a truck ultimately falls victim to these low-level bridges, you know the destruction will be documented on the Facebook page for the “KK Can Opener,” which strives to note each and every time a Bay View railroad bridge “feeds” on a semi. The page personifies the bridges as one collective sentient structure that derives great joy from chomping trailers in either of its so-called “jaws.” And yes, you know we made a “Railroad Bridge” T-shirt to get in on the fun.
Though not quite as famous as its Milwaukee counterpart, there’s also a bridge in nearby Wauwatosa that’s been known to fuck up some trucks from time to time. While its official name is the Swan Boulevard Bridge, it’s better-known among locals by its nickname: The Swan Slicer.
This suburban bridge has a clearance height of merely 11 feet and 6 inches southbound and an even 12 feet northbound, and has long presented problems for truck drivers trying to navigate the road that’s located just off bustling North Avenue. Like the K.K. Can Opener, the Slicer has its very own Facebook page, which currently has more than 2,300 followers.
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Its semi-recent semi-crunching carnage has also been chronicled on Instagram. There have been 40 trucks that have gotten stuck in the bridge since 2019, despite the presence of signs listing the exact heights of both of the bridge’s sides and other signage acknowledging the low clearance.
In recent months, more signs (including “Closed To Trucks” signs) have been installed near the Slicer, which has actually proven quite effective in preventing the bridge from enjoying further feasts.
We stopped by the bridge last week and, while looking southbound, took note of three signs indicating the exact clearance height (two of them with a flashing border), two “Low Clearance” signs, and a bright yellow bar stretching across the bridge’s underpass. It’s not perfect, but it helps…unless you run the Facebook page for The Swan Slicer. Though it seems like Wauwatosa is taking some measures to drastically reduce The Swan Slicer’s damage, it’s only a matter of time before a tired trucker barreling down Swan Boulevard permits it to feed again.
In the meantime, you know the KK Can Opener will probably eat again eventually and the I-94 Bridge near American Family Field (with a 12-foot, 2-inch clearance) is likely to take a few more hits in the months to come. And when a truck inevitably becomes wedged in one of the region’s handful of inexplicably low bridges, you can be sure someone will be there to post about it on social media. Safe travels, Milwaukee. Please pay attention to those road signs!