THE Gobbagombalin Bridge, opened in 1997, has proved its worth as a flood-free access to Wagga.In past flood events, when the Murrumbidgee River reached nine metres high, road access to the north was cut.And when it reached 9.7 metres the Sturt Highway was closed, leaving the state’s largest inland city virtually isolated.This week, former member for Wagga Joe Schipp reflected on the success of his determined campaign to get the Gobba Bridge built once the Coalition won office in 1988. This week was the first time in Wagga’s history the city was not cut off by a flood of a similar or greater height, thanks to the Gobba Bridge.Built at a cost of $49 million, the bridge and approach roads were officially opened on July 27, 1997.It is still the single biggest project ever undertaken on the Olympic Highway and involved the construction of the 1.24 kilometre bridge and a 10.4km deviation of the Olympic Highway from Edward Street to just north of Bomen Road.For a large part of the 1970s and the 1980s, it seemed the bridge would never be built.But a turning point came when the project became a key promise by the Coalition before it won the 1988 NSW election.“It was a promise made and a promise insisted on,” Mr Schipp said this week. “It has served its purpose, and it has proved its worth.”Mr Schipp said the bridge had allowed Wagga to grow to the north at Estella, Cartwrights Hill, Bomen and Boorooma and had played a key role in the establishment and development of Charles Sturt University.“Without that flood-free access we would not have a university out there,” Mr Schipp said.Thousands of residents have used the bridge this week as a viewing platform to see the engorged Murrumbidgee River.