Photo taken by Terry Finnerty, photographer. Shown here is the bridge and the tollhouse on the right.
The privately funded bridge at Opiki was officially opened in January 1918, then known as the Tane Suspension Bridge. The original purpose of the bridge was to transport flax fibre from Tane and Rangitāne Mills to the Rangiotu Railway station, to Palmerston North and then to Foxton for exporting. Many hours and transport costs were thus saved.
By 1926 flax traffic had fallen off and the route was made publicly accessible. Toll charges were introduced to pay for the upkeep and maintenance of the bridge. The bridge was closed in 1969 and can still be seen from State Highway 56 today (2022).
