The tear-down of the Traffic Bridge in Saskatoon began in earnest Thursday as work crews took apart one span.

The rusting bridge was condemned more than two years ago after engineers determined it could collapse at any time.

The section removed Thursday was accessible from land.

Work begins on removing a section of the Traffic Bridge in Saskatoon. (Jennifer Quesnel/CBC)

"I'm really sad by it," Saskatoon resident Jeff Wickstrom said of the demolition. "A piece of history is just getting ripped down in front of us."

While one street stops and no longer takes people across the South Saskatchewan River, drivers and people who use recreational trails on the riverbank will find the area easier to navigate.

"We want to get this span down so we can get Saskatchewan Crescent functional for traffic again, and Rotary Park functional for pedestrians to walk back and forth," Rob Frank, an engineer with the City of Saskatoon, said Thursday. "It'll just make this whole area functional again. "

While the bridge is coming down, a replacement has not been determined.

The city estimates a new span would cost around $30 million and says it can not afford that, on its own.

With files from CBC's Jennifer Quesnel