Missing Bridge Anomaly

I tried posting this on the GE / GM "report error" site but received no response.  Perhaps someone here can trigger a fix or explain what the heck is going on.

While visiting West Yellowstone and hiking in the area, we were where highway 191 north of town crosses Grayling Creek.  There's a new highway bridge here, built in the last decade.  The _old_ highway bridge is still here, too - - it was never torn down, and you can still walk or bike across it.  But ... when you look on GE, only the new bridge appears!  There's only creekbed where the old one still exists just west / left of the new bridge.  Using historical imagery, you can see where the highway used to go, and where the old bridge was [and still is].  In the 8/11/2011 imagery, you can even see the construction equipment and work on the new road path and bridge in progress to the right / east of the old bridge.  The new bridge also has angled ends, visible as about 45 degree changes in color tone, while the old bridge had less-angled ends.  It's really easy to tell which bridge is in the current view due to the angled ends and tone shift.

I've attached two photos, one of both bridges from the north end of the new one, another of the new bridge taken from the old bridge, both just a few weeks ago.  Amazing how I can take photos while standing in mid air above a creek.

Of course the real mystery to me is that GE would have had to edit out the old bridge to do this.

Curious to see what any of you can discover about this.  Thanks.

Bob

hi and welcome Bob!

how do you know the old bridge "was never torn down"?

following historical imagery on my PC GE Pro, the story below begins to unfold:

in 2011 there was an old road with its own bridge then all have been demolished to build a new bridge on a slightly different roadpath.
few years have passed and sometime after 7/20/2014 (latest GE imagery date where the "new-old" bridge still missing) someone(s) has decided to re-build a pedestrian (or lower path) bridge just right to the place where the old bridge stood.
(the "old" bridge on your recent photos looks quite new) 

maybe decision was motivated by to avoid further accidents might have happened to pedestrians/trekkers/cyclists on a highway bend as in this case.

now you can stand on a bridge that exists in present time, but not on latest GE imagery.

or I have not understood your question...

best!
g

here I attach a kmz placemark for this thread:
old new bridge.kmz (805 B)
just to be sure that we talk about the same spot...

Thanks for taking a look - - interesting theory.  It prompted another idea which may fit the observed facts.  I took several other photos while there, which show no paving approaching the other bridge, just not-graded-this-year-or-longer gravel on both ends, all overgrown now.  There are no continuations beyond either end of the bridge for pedestrians or cyclists, i.e. no paths to connect to; the pedestrians that do use it consists of people fishing the creek who use it to avoid the highway bridge, although those are too few in number to have justified building it.  Bikes could cross it, though I never saw any do so.  However, there are diagonal yellow-and-black hazard markers at both ends, indicating it was intended for vehicular traffic.  It does look "not old" in terms of materials now that you mention it.  It also has an unusual surface, and is narrower than the main road, barely passable by two vehicles.  Based on your "built afterwards" idea, I'm now thinking it was most likely a construction or firefighting equipment temporary bypass bridge dropped there after the new bridge was built and simply never removed for whatever reason.  The supporting ends of the bridge are consistent in nature with the styles used for temporary drop-bridges, once I looked into it.  As Holmes would say, "eliminate the impossible" ... and we have the improbable but conceivable remaining.

Thanks for the help; let me know if you think this explains it.

Bob

possible explanation, but why not should have been built to be a permanent firefighting equipment bypass and water supply point bridge!?

on default imagery from 2014 preliminary earthworks can be noticed to N, a plained path to connect the drop-bridge straight with the dirtroad which leads to the mountains.
in case of wildfire, firefighter's action would not disturb highway traffic anytime this way.

the mountain dirtroad however is another mystery itself: suitable for 4wheeled vehicle,  seems to be used very often, besides leads to the great, stinky nowhere. (to nice natural sightseeing places I bet) (:

Path to mountain dirtroad.kmz (710 B)