The bridge was inspected regularly but it eventually fell into disuse. Truck loads increased and roads and methods of transport became more efficient and of better quality causing the bridge's importance to wane. Though the bridge was still a short cut to the farms south of Lyndon as well as to Prophetstown and Tampico the county could not maintain such a limited use bridge. On June 30, 1980 the county inspection resulted in the bridge being closed to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic. The bridge, which had a four-ton weight limit the eleven years preceding its closure, sat neglected for the next 15 years.